'Forum tries to hijack building jobs in province'

Craig Mallon's last words to his wife, in the form of an SMS, are haunting - and point to a growing threat posed by a rogue KwaZulu-Natal business forum.

"Please look after our kids. You will be safer now that I am gone. DBF [the Delangokubona Business Forum] threatened us. Love you," Mallon texted.

Hours later, on November 23, his wife found him dead, allegedly after he killed himself, although the police are still investigating.

The construction worker's death is linked to a mafia-style construction war in which the notorious forum has taken on the largest construction firms in South Africa - a situation that many believe has put civil works projects worth billions of rands, from pipelines to hospitals and from malls to roads in KwaZulu-Natal, at risk.

Mallon's work at a KwaDukuza hospital, in Stanger, was hamstrung by Delangokubona in the months before his death.

And this week a R1.8-billion revamp of Tsogo Sun's Suncoast Casino complex was halted by the forum, which is accused of using threats of violence, intimidation and extortion to get lucrative construction work.

So severe is the threat that when he gives his state of the province address on Tuesday, KwaZulu-Natal premier Willies Mchunu is expected to outline plans to tackle organisations such as the DBF.

Last year the eThekwini municipality took the forum to court. Former municipal boss Sibusiso Sithole called forum members "thugs" for holding up contractors at the electricity and refuse departments and preventing them from working.

Also last year, construction firm Elias Mechanicos Building Civil Engineering went to court after its R120-million Durban city fleet building site was nearly torched - allegedly by the forum's members - early one morning in June.

Two weeks ago the KwaDukuza district municipality was granted a temporary order preventing the forum from "threatening, intimidating, assaulting or interfering" with municipal employees, contractors or subcontractors at 34 construction sites.

Days later, Deck, Steel & Concrete CC won a permanent court order preventing the forum from obstructing work and intimidating staff at a site on the University of KwaZulu-Natal's Edgewood campus.

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The forum's agenda and constitution remains vague, however theyhave reportedly demanded that they be given a share of the province's construction industry in the form of contracts and sub-contracts.

Previously, the organisation fell under a Durban-based umbrella body called the Federation for Radical Economic Transformation, but the federation said this week that DBF had been expelled a week earlier over disagreements with their modus operandi.

Mallon's wife has asked not to be identified and declined to comment, saying the matter remained "sensitive" and that there was "so much more at play".

A Delangokubona director, Truman Mnyandu, refused to respond to queries.

Bradley Boertje, of the Liviero construction company, confirmed that work onStanger Private Hospital had been obstructed, but said delays had not been substantial.

"We did not witness Mallon being threatened by the Delangokubona Business Forum and therefore have no evidence in this regard," he said.

Peter Barnard, of Cox Yeats Attorneys, who represents 10 construction companies and businesses, has squared off with the forum in court.

"The issue at hand is that we have to react and go to court when these problems arise.

"If we get an order in line with the application then the police might well be able to act the moment a problem arises," he said.

"At some point at the beginning of last year, I understand that the forum marched on city hall and demanded a stake in construction work from the city. When nothing came of that they started threatening contractors directly."

He said some contractors, unwilling to suffer losses from site closures and penalty clauses, had kowtowed.

"We now have a situation where we have about 30 different forums, all with different aims and agendas, vying for work, training or payment.

"This attitude of entitlement has resulted in violence and threats. You have millions of people who want work and only a finite number of jobs available," Barnard said.