UPDATE: ANCYL vs Ballito Junction – round two

The Ballito Junction mall has told the ANC Youth League (ANCYL) in the greater KwaDukuza region that they cannot force their tenants to hire locals but that they will facilitate education and mentorship programs for the youth.

This is in response to the ANCYL’s demands in a memorandum that was handed to Junction management on their opening day, March 23, during a protest march by several thousand league supporters.

Also read: ANCYL make their way to Ballito

During the development of the R1.6 billion mall, the developers agreed to work with KwaDukuza municipality to help locals find jobs. During construction they took on 819 locals and 27 local suppliers. Since completion they mall has provided about 1 500 permanent and part-time jobs of which about 80 per cent were to be filled by locals.

The league accused the mall of not providing jobs for unemployed KwaDukuza youth and its memorandum demanded that the Junction management:

• give KwaDukuza youth be given first preference in employment
• give the ‘historically disadvantaged’ priority in allocation of ownership of shops
• partner emerging local businesses with established businesses
• prefer locals for supply of goods and services, and
• pay better salaries to young people.

In a detailed response handed to the league last week, Junction management said most major tenants had their own economic upliftment programs to upskill local farmers and other suppliers.

They had received 13 500 job applications, which would be kept in their database for when openings arose. The mall management itself employs only seven people, five of whom are from KwaDukuza. The number of locals employed by tenants is not known.

The Junction promised to work with the local communities and said it would continue to ensure that local communities, specifically the youth, benefit from direct contracts for services.

However, league regional secretary Musa Zondi rejected the mall’s response and accused management of “wasting their precious time”. They vowed to stage continuous mass protest action at the Junction without warning on the busiest days of the month.

“It is extremely concerning that the developers of the mall lose an opportunity to apply their sober mind on genuine issues and instead chose to waste our precious time and energy by defensive grandiloquence and belittling our organisation.

“As part of the second phase the campaign, we are going to embark on a series of of more intense actions at the mall to coerce the other concerned party to respond appropriately to the demands raised in the March 23 memorandum.

“Part of the planned continuous package which awaits the greedy bosses and mall management would be a massive march or protest action, picketing and unexpected visits to the mall wherein we will address people inside with a view of understanding our plight as the working class youth of this region. For far too long we have been spectators whilst the greedy bosses and minorities were feasting on what is rightfully ours.”

The league could not promise that people taking part in the protest would not get violent, Zondi said.

The Junction responded that they took a dim view of the league’s threat.

“Threats to further disruption to the business operations of the centre and other businesses in the area are not well received. There is no need for them given our ongoing commitment and passion towards social and economic upliftment, coupled with the fact that any disruptions will only result to all of the business operating from within the centre.”

Umhlali SAPS spokesperson Vinny Pillay warned the league that 48 hours notice had to be given to the police before a march.

“The municipality will have to approve any mass action that will take place. If the rules are not followed, the protest can be regarded as illegal and we will arrest people.”

>>  Expect to find the latest trends in Health, Wellness and Beauty in Ballito.

>> Meet the top players in the North Coast property industry. See our Property People feature.

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