At least four people were injured after being shot with rubber bullets by police officers at the Waterworks informal settlement in Westonaria on 11September.
This comes after residents staged a massive protest action in the area barricading the road with burning tyres and rocks.
The Herald received reports that a petrol tanker was sight alight and subsequently, traffic came to a standstill on the entire R559 and the N12 towards Johannesburg.
This was the latest in a string of recent protest actions about service delivery in the area.
An eight-year-old girl is suspected to have been injured with a rubber bullet as well but this cannot be confirmed at this stage.
According to a resident at the scene Tsakani Ngwayila, the Westonaria Local Municipality has been looking down on them for several years and refuses to render service delivery stating that Waterwrks does not fall under the jurisdiction of Westonaria.
“We are fed-up with this municipality and everybody associated with it.
“Every time we ask for some sort of service delivery we are told that our area is not recognized as a part of Westonaria, but during election times, they are quick to campaign here,” says Ngwayila.
She adds that they are merely being used for votes and nothing else.
The Herald spoke to one of the injured residents at the scene Joel Maanwane, who was shot in the eye, and according to him, he was in his yard when the police fired shots.
“I just saw police officers flooding to our shacks chasing after protesters.
“They were firing rubber bullets and unfortunately I was caught in the line of fire,” says Maanwane.
According to Westonaria SAPS spokesperson Thembi Masango, residents took to the streets in the early hours of the morning at approximately 3am.
“Unfortunately at this stage I cannot reveal any more information with regards to the injuries sustained.
“I can only confirm that some residents have been arrested and were taken away in three trucks filled to capacity,” says Masango.
