Mandeni a ghost town as protest action continues

Isithebe Industrial Estate in Mandeni, northern KwaZulu-Natal, was a ghost town on Tuesday after violent protests forced many firms to temporarily shut down.

On Monday,  residents blockaded roads near the industrial estate and intimidated people who were on their way to work.

"As of now, things are not back to normal. A lot of firms are closed and some workers were sent home this morning. The community has not stopped," said Mandeni mayor Siphesihle Zulu.

The protest action came after a letter, titled Shutdown Mandeni, circulated among residents with a list of complaints about the municipality. The letter said the action was to stop the spending of the community's money, the alleged reckless usage of municipal resources and alleged nepotism in the municipality. It also called for Zulu to resign

Zulu was speaking to media on Tuesday on the fringes of the opening of KZN's first bulk-buying warehouse programme. The programme of the department of economic development, tourism and environmental affairs is aimed at helping small shop owners access bulk stock at reasonable prices.

Zulu said they were surprised by the protest action as they had met  community members and asked them to draft a letter detailing their grievances.

"As the municipality, we were not expecting that at a time when we are gearing up for the elections that there would be this type of disturbance in the community," said Zulu.

Despite the meeting with the community on Monday, residents blocked the road with burning tyres and rubbish on Tuesday.

Zulu said that once the letter was drafted it would be sent to the chief whip of the municipality.

Meanwhile, MEC Sihle Zikalala said he hoped the community would embrace the opening of the new bulk-buying warehouse as it would be of great benefit to them.

"Bulk buying is the ultimate solution to township traders who, for years now, have been denied access to goods at affordable prices. Traders will now order, using the latest paperless technology, from a state-of-the-art warehouse in Mandeni and have their goods delivered at no cost to their shops," he said.