UPDATE: The ANC in Limpopo has received the report and decision of the Municipal Demarcation Board regarding the demand of the Malamulele community to have their own municipality. The ANC was part of the engagements and supported the people of Malamulele to find a workable solution regarding their problems.
As an organisation, the ANC accepts the decision of the Municipal Demarcation Board (MDB), as an authority tasked with determining municipal boundaries. However, the ANC, and as clearly indicated by the MDB, is fully aware that the process of municipal reconfiguration is a continuous one as the country seeks to create more efficient and effective municipalities. In this regard, the ANC commits to work with all our communities to ensure that any municipal configuration optimises service delivery through sustainable and viable municipalities.
The party will await government processes under the leadership of the minister of cooperative governance and traditional affairs in this regard.
UPDATE: A third school was ablaze in Malamulele on Tuesday afternoon. This was confirmed by provincial police spokesperson Col Ronel Otto.
A school in Malamulele, Limpopo, was set alight on Monday night, as the town continues to be on lock down following the announcement that the community would not get its own municipality.
Forensic teams will head to Malamulele High School today (Tuesday) to establish the exact cause of the blaze after the administration block of the school was set on fire. Police yesterday said the town was on lock down and would most likely continue to be on lock down until Friday. This, after the Municipal Demarcation Board (MDB) last week announced the community would not get its own municipality despite weeks of protest.
“The situation is tense,” said police spokesperson Col Ronel Otto on Monday. “It is like a ghost town, everything is closed.”
Otto said only police and healthcare services were working in the town. Everything else, including the schools, were still shut down by protesters.
UPDATE:
The Democratic Alliance calls for immediate calm in the Malamulele area of Limpopo, currently the scene of violent and destructive protests.
Overnight these protests have led to the burning of at least one high school, and have damaged the premises of at least three other schools.The residents’ outrage comes after Limpopo Premier Stanley Mathabatha promised them a new municipality, but has been unable to deliver on this promise.
Last night’s burning of Malamulele Secondary School is a dark day for the community and a tragic setback for the learners of Malamulele. Also, more than 90 schools in the Malamulele area have not yet opened their doors for the 2015 school year, due to the protests. This means that an estimated 40 000 learners have not begun the 2015 academic year in Malamulele.
The DA calls on Limpopo premier Mathabatha to take up the plight of the people of Malamulele and do everything necessary to establish a regional office of the Thulamela Municipality in Malamulele, and to bring an end to these violent protests.
