The likelihood of transferring the Limpopo Legislature from Lebowakgomo to Polokwane has once again been raised in the province, this time by Public Works MEC Mr Thaba Mufamadi.

He referred to the issue last week, during a media briefing prior to the presentation of his department's budget vote in the legislature, saying crucial aspects such as the logistics and financing of the project would be investigated by a special task team.

However, Mr Mufamadi did not mention any budgetal estimates for the suggested move. He pointed out that consideration would have to be given to centralising government departments in the city, near such a new legislature complex.

Some provincial government departments are presently accommodated in office blocks scattered throughout Polokwane, while others have their headquarters in the existing legislature buildings at Lebowakgomo, 45 km from the city. This complex was orginally built for the Lebowa homeland government, during the apartheid era.

In view of the possibility of a new legislature complex, the future use of the existing Lebowakgomo premises would also form part of the task team's investigations, the MEC explained.

"We hope that an announcement regarding the overall plan will be possible by July this year," Mufamadi told the media members, who tried unsuccessfully to extract more information from him.

When the idea of a single government complex in Polokwane was first mentioned in 1995 by Premier Ngoako Ramatlhodi, it became a highly contentious issue, because of the residential and business implications for the city at the time.

There were fears in business circles that such a project would upset the city's integrated development plan, and strong public opinion against the projected cost of R500 million resulted in the plan’s being shelved, also in the light of pressing housing and education needs.

Up to the end of his second term as Premier, Ramatlhodi continued to promote the project, supported by Mufamadi, who was the MEC for Finance at that time.

Initial public and business reaction in the city to this week's announcement of a re-think of the issue was cautiously positive.