Despite more than R31.7m in refurbishment costs and repeated assurances from public works infrastructure minister Dean Macpherson, the Nieuwmeester Dome will not be ready in time for the 2026 state of the nation address Sona.
Completion of the structure, intended to serve as a temporary chamber for the National Assembly, has now been postponed without a confirmed date of completion.
National Assembly speaker Thoko Didiza was scheduled to receive the Dome from Macpherson on January 30. Hours before the event, parliament issued a media advisory confirming that the ceremony would not proceed and a revised date would be communicated. As a result, the Sona will again be delivered at Cape Town City Hall, which has served as the venue since the destruction of the National Assembly precinct in the January 2022 fire.
