Angry residents of Diepkloof in Soweto have shutdown foreign owned spaza shops following the death of yet another child after allegedly eating snacks bought from a tuck shop.
5 year-old Siyabonga Mnisi was with three friends when they bought and shared the snacks.
The children started complaining about stomach cramps an hour or so after eating the snacks and were rushed to hospital where Siyabonga sadly passed on.
Residents raided the shop where the snacks were bought and found various expired items.
The Ethiopian national who runs the shop also slept inside the store.
“We want these people to go, our children have been dying for many years and the government just keeps quiet so we have to do this as parents, they must go,” said an angry resident.
Anti immigrants pressure group Operation Dudula led the raid and expressed frustration that it is failing to convince landlords to cut ties with foreign nationals who are operating spaza shops in rented premises.
Operation Dudula President Zandile Dabula law enforcement agencies have to start targeting the landlords whom she accuses of harbouring criminals.
“We can’t win this fight if when we r lose the spaza shops the landlords go and register for these illegal immigrants who are killing our children. This is illegal and the police must now round up these landlords because they are committing a crime,” said Dabula.
The angry residents went street to street wanting to close down foreign owned spaza shops but found most of them had already closed presumably after being tipped off.
A high level government delegation visited the area and promised residents the government will deal with the spaza shops and the accompanying deaths.
Finance MEC Lebogang Maile urged residents not to take the law into their own hands and to allow the government to do its work.
“We understand the frustration but people can’t just go on the rampage and start destroying properties. We are to meet with Dudula tomorrow and we call on police to start acting against crime. It’s now time for police to stop smiling and start enforcing the law and I’m not calling for police brutality but for the law to be enforced,” he said.
Maile also warned landlords not to register spaza shops on behalf of their non qualifying foreign nationals.
“It is unlawful for anyone to go and register a spaza shop on behalf of an immigrant. If that person is in the country lawfully then they should have a problem registering but if they have a problem then they not legal and you are breaking the law when you help them,” said Maile.
Mnisi becomes the 24 child to die in as many weeks after eating snacks bought from spaza shops owned by foreigners.