Ratanda residents, fed up with the level of service delivery from the Lesedi Local Municipality embarked on protest action on September 15.
This resulted in the R549, Vaaldam Road to Ratanda, barricaded with rocks and burning tires from around 18:00 near the waste dumping site.
Local SAPS, Heidelberg CPS, AfriForum Heidelberg, security companies and Ratanda Local Safety Forum were on scene to monitor the action.
It is believed that the protest action is due to electricity issues and pre-paid electricity.
The pre-paid electricity problems apparently stem from the fact that LMM is preventing electricity from being purchased to meters not connected to LMM accounts.
The protestors indicated that the entrances to Ratanda will remain closed until LMM takes heed of their gripes, concerns and issues.
During the evening of September 15, some foreign shops were also looted.
On September 16, various entrances to Ratanda remained barricaded and closed by the protestors.
The situation is closely monitored by law enforcement and there is a heavy SAPS presence in the area.
LMM was contacted for a response. No response is currently forthcoming on the issue from Lesedi Local Municipality.
