Democratic Alliance condemns continued violence
The DA’s Steve Tshwete Local Municipality caucus said in a statement to www.mobserver.co.za that they hope the illegal strike will come to an end and that calm and order will once again reign over the municipality.
The statement reads:
“We as the Democratic Alliance would like to start off with our deepest condolences with the deceased and their family. The loss of life is heart breaking and we have the deepest sympathy with the family.
“Steve Tshwete has been plagued by continuous strikes since September 2021. Since the onset we as the Democratic Alliance have attempted to find solutions to demands without success. We have urged Administration to end the ongoing strikes, but no agreement was found. Due to ongoing violence, and intimidation, Administration saw it fit to hire Security to protect infrastructure and attending employees and there were no formal recorded objections.
“On the 17th of August 2022, we learnt that an altercation at the municipality saw four people being shot which resulted in a loss of life. We further learnt that after this took place a vehicle was set alight and police vehicles tyres were slashed, and members of the public’s vehicles were thrown with bottles. As much as we condemn the loss of life, we also condemn this ongoing violence perpetrated against the public.
“We call on the South African Police force to do everything in their power to head a full investigation into the unfortunate events that led to a loss of life and further urge SAPS to restore law and order in Steve Tshwete as we as the Democratic Alliance have insisted since last year.
“The sad truth of where we find ourselves as a community today, is that people have been used by instigators to achieve their goals without concern of the consequence of their actions. The truth is that with patience, following procedure and adhering to the laws set out by government, a peaceful resolution would have been met. All demands have already been met or are in the process of being met, but the lack patience from instigators has gotten in the way of due process.
“We sympathise with the families of the deceased; we sympathise with the community of Steve Tshwete for what they have been put through. We can only hope that the unfortunate events of the 17th of August 2022 will never happen again and that the illegal strikes will come to an end and that calm and order will once again reign over STLM.”
