By Emily Setona
QWAQWA – Tensions flared at Setsing shopping center on Thursday morning when hawkers arrived to find their stalls demolished and structures removed by municipal officials, with support from the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), traffic officers, and SAPS.
The operation which took place on 3 July, was part of a multi-stakeholder enforcement initiative led by Maluti-a-Phofung Local Municipality (MAP).
Maluti-a-phofung local municipality’s spokesperson Thabo Kessah has acknowledged such operation took place.
“The operation was intended to address traffic congestion on Motebang Road caused by both illegal taxis and hawkers. He emphasized that permanent steel structures on public roads are not allowed and that the operation was not led by any individual but by the municipality in collaboration with law enforcement and the SANDF”
But this did not go down well with hawkers who claimed there was no formal eviction order issued. “We were not warned as a committee. We could have prepared our members. This makes it look like we sold them out,” the secretary of the Setsing Hawkers Association (SHA), Nthabiseng Lesitha.
Lesitha further stated that the municipality had held meetings with the association where vendors clearly expressed that relocation to Lediboho would not be viable.
“Now the decision to remove our hawkers was implemented without notifying the association,” she said.
Chairperson of the association, Rapetswa Motlatso, described the operation as “an insult and a declaration of war,” stating that the presence of soldiers sent a message that hawkers were being treated like criminals.
“We are running businesses to feed our families. We don’t block roads or cause disruption,” said Motlatso.
