A group of disgruntled former “Operation Vat Alles” employees has been accused of disrupting the new public works programmes in Tshwane.
Metro MMC for shared services Cilliers Brink said in a statement that the group, who were contracted to clean the city’s towns and townships, were disrupting the Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP) in regions 1 and 3.
The group’s contracts ended on 31 December last year.
“What followed was a spate of threats and attacks on the newly appointed EPWP contract workers as well as city officials,” Brink said.
“In region 1, a waste management supervisor was assaulted by the previous ‘Vat Alles’ EPWP group in Winterveldt. The group also threatened the newly recruited ‘Operation Gata le Nna’ EPWP workers with violence if they continued to report for duty,” Brink said.
ALSO READ: Tshwane metro hands over more than 3 000 title deeds
He said in region 3, the disgruntled group stopped trucks transporting workers from Atteridgeville and Lotus Gardens to the city.
“This has subsequently affected service delivery in the CBD,” Brink said.
He said the newly appointed EPWP contract beneficiaries’ safety was a priority.
“All possible precautions will be followed to ensure their safety while individuals exercise their right to equal and open appointment to job opportunities in the city of Tshwane.”
Gata le nna, which means “step along with me”, is a reformed EPWP recruitment policy framework that was passed by the metro council on 28 September 2017.
Brink said the metro will continue with the random selection of EPWP workers, which was open to public observation. The selection process would also be published in advance in the wards and regions from which the EPWP beneficiaries will be recruited.
Do you have more information about the story? Please send us an email to editorial@rekord.co.za or phone us on 083 625 4114.
For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites:
For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram
