He also emphasised that the upgrade will be to the Nongoma precinct, not to the king’s palace, as has been widely reported.

“It just so happens that this area, where the annual reed dance takes place, is next to the king’s palace,” he said.

News that the department had earmarked R300-million for the first and second phases of what is to be called the Enyokeni Cultural Precinct caused an uproar among taxpayers this week.

Although the king’s spokesman Mbonisi Zulu confirmed that King Zwelithini had asked for the development, Mogodiri said “the precinct was identified by the department as an entity in need of upgrade according to the mandate of the department.”

He added, “The purpose of developing the precinct is to develop the Nongoma area for the annual reed dance and other cultural events that will take place there — it is not to upgrade the king’s palace.”

He said the money will not only go towards the construction of buildings, but also towards refurbishing infrastructure plus “improving things like roads and the water system in the area of Nongoma”.

“There will also be libraries and art centres built. This project will be also be great for job creation as people will be able to sell their wares in and around the precinct as well.”

DA arts and culture spokesman George Mari was reported as saying the amount allocated was “ridiculous” and that King Zwelithini should use funds from his annual R60-million budget for the development.

“This is an insult to people who are crying out about services in many communities,” he said.

When asked what his response was to those who believed that this money would be better spent on service delivery, Mogodiri’s response was, “That belief is unfounded because we are simply following our mandate as the Department of Arts and Culture, which is cultural development.”

“It is unrealistic to expect the Department of Arts and Culture to take care of what other departments have as their mandates. For example, if people need water, there is the Department of Water Affairs. Also, this project will help take care of the basic needs and service delivery to the Nongoma community by improving infrastructure.”

He also mentioned that the basic needs of the maidens who attend the dance every year will be addressed as they have previously had to bathe in the open, “which was a violation of their human rights and not safe”, and the planned project will put a stop to that.

eNCA asked Mogodiri whether or not plans for this project will continuously be made publicly available as issues such as e-tolls and Nkandla have left the public jaded about high-cost projects.

He responded, “We have been open and we will continue to be transparent. It was the department itself that released these plans and the figure of R300-million. We are not hiding anything.”

The spokesman could not give a monetary estimate of the benefit of the Enyokeni Cultural Precinct to the economy, but he did say that “the development of the area will ensure it is a year-long as opposed to seasonal money-maker.”

“Businesses and local traders that will operate in and around the developed area will do so throughout the year, not just during the reed dance period.”

https://www.enca.com/r300m-taxpayers-investment-benefit-tourism-spokesman