Decade-long wait over as Port Shepstone courts open their doors
The wait is finally over as the new Port Shepstone Magistrate's Court is set to open its doors on Thursday
Poor planning caused a delay in the completion of the multimillion-rand project, which was supposed to wrap up a decade ago.
The Department of Justice’s KZN head, Pat Moodley, says the first contractor who awarded the project went into business rescue in 2018.
“There was a terrible long delay while all the legal processes finalised and the project then started. The second contract was awarded in 2021, so we are very happy that we now have a court that will be officially opened by the honourable minister."
The ministers of Justice Ronald Lamola and Public Works Sihle Zikalala will officiate the opening of the court in Ugu.
The court will service eight police stations and a population of around 400 000 the district.
Moodley says they've been waiting for this moment for a long time.
“The new court is a magnificent building. There are 16 courtrooms, there's one High Court, six district courts, the regional courts, two sexual offences courts, two
civil courts, two family courts and we also have an equality court.
“So the judge president has also asked us if there are other courts that we can make to the high court because, as we know, the Durban High Court is currently under renovation."
