Rains expose poor workmanship on city roads again
Spira Tlhankane | Friday December 19, 2025 14:16
Several roads deteriorated rapidly following the downpours, with newly patched sections giving way to potholes and surface failures.
The damage has reignited criticism that the city council relies on substandard cold-mix asphalt, resulting in waste of taxpayers’ money.
In Phakalane, where potholes were reportedly repaired by the GCC barely two months ago, roads were once badly damaged by last Saturday’s rains, leaving some stretches severely degraded and difficult to navigate.
This is not the first time Gaborone roads failed under heavy rainfall.
Similar problems were observed earlier this year when prolonged rains and flooding left large parts of the city’s road network damaged.
Notably, some of the affected roads had not exceeded their expected design lifespan, raising questions about construction standards and maintenance practices.
Sources within the civic centre have attributed the recurring failures to the continued use of poor-quality cold-mix asphalt supplied by a company contracted by the council.
They claim that the material does not offer value for money, arguing that its performance over successive rainy seasons points to inferior quality.
The sources further allege that subcontractors responsible for road maintenance are compelled to procure asphalt from the same preferred supplier, despite the persistent problems recorded over the years.
Efforts to obtain comment from the city council officials were unsuccessful at the time of going to press.
In September, Gaborone Mayor Oarabile Motlaleng told a full council session that for road development, only maintenance was carried out through the recurrent budget and Roads Fund Levy.
He disclosed that a total of P4.3 million was allocated for the Roads Fund Levy to undertake road maintenance works, including electrical works.
“I am pleased to inform you that the funds have been utilised accordingly with a total expenditure of P4.1 million for installation of 25 solar streetlights in Block 9 and 50 in Ledumang, desilting of storm water drains mainly along the Segoditshane river, as well as pothole patching and vegetation control,” he said then.