Jacob Zuma in new controversy over road project The new roads, which cost an estimated £40m and stretch a total of 50 miles between KwaNxamalala and other nearby villages and towns, were unveiled this week by officials from the KwaZulu Natal provincial government. But opposition parties say that developments around Nkandla, the nearby town which has given its name to the president's home, represent "an unprecedented and biased cash splurge using public funds," and point to other roads in the province in greater need of repair. The area, which has an unemployment rate of 47.4 per cent, has recently benefited from the construction of a library, a post office, a Jacob Zuma Education Trust office, and a health clinic. There is also a plan in the pipeline for a new town already dubbed Zumaville by media pundits to be built a stone's throw from his house. It will reportedly span almost 500 acres and include government offices, a theatre, a school with boarding facilities and a recreation centre with a swimming pool and tennis courts. Tempers flared in South Africa's parliament on Wednesday as the ANC chairman of the transport committee prevented opposition MPs from asking "politically motivated" questions about the roads project. Mr Zuma, who is up for re-election as ANC president in December, has remained silent on the allegations of impropriety around Nkandla, and the public officials said to be funding the projects have refused to disclose further details, citing national security. "Public funds should not be spent to service the home and the hometown of the president to the detriment of other projects that are meant to improve the lives of ordinary South Africans," Ian Ollis, the Democratic Alliance transport spokesman said.