QONCE: Following the devastating looting and destruction of businesses in Kwazulu Natal and Gauteng provinces in recent days, the EC govt. in partnership with the taxi industry embarked on visits to the taxi ranks around Buffalo City Metro Municipality today.
The campaign was led by the Cogta MEC Xolile Nqatha who told the crowd that as government they have seen it proper to come out and thank the people for denouncing and preventing looting and destruction of businesses and properties in this province. He shared with them his personal experience of this kind of madness as in his own home town of Stutterheim in 2018 where people destroyed municipal offices, libraries, and hall, the incidents which resulted in Standard Bank deciding to leave town. Even today this infrastructure is yet to be revived and the town still doesn’t have a bank. He said, “We salute the taxi industry, vegetable and fruit vendors and the community at large for their undying love and patriotic spirit for their country”.
The Eastern Cape deputy chairperson of Santaco, Gabs Mtshala was at forefront of the movement by declaring from the very onset that they will fight any attempt to loot and destroy businesses as that will make them loose their livelihood because there will be no passengers to ferry to and from work. Their mission was and is still to protect and sustain value chain of township economy. BCMM ward 31 Councilor, Ntombekhaya Ntshebe said they mobilized the community through their whatsapp group and embarked on a motorcade and moved around the CBD loud hailing the community to resist the call and temptation to loot and destroy our businesses as our area is faced with high levels of unemployment. She hinted that the campaign was fully supported by the King William’s Town station commander, Colonel Nomvuyo Mrwebi. These efforts have resulted in zero incidents of looting and destruction of businesses in the Eastern Cape. The initiative will continue until the situation returns to normal in the country. The BCMM Executive Mayor, Cllr Xola Pakati joined the MEC in this walk about.
Source: South African Police Service