Kwa-Thema residents force foreign-owned shop owners out

Kwa-Thema – Residents in Kwa-Thema took to the streets on Friday physically pushing all foreign tuckshop owners out of the area.

A mob of over 5 000 residents could be seen moving from one foreign owned tuckshop to the next, demanding that the owners pack up their stock and vacate the area.

In shops where the owners resisted, the mob vandalised the premises and physically removed stock throwing items out and trashing them.

Desperate residents could be seen salvaging what they could from the trashed stock for basics such as rice and washing powder.

Children were excited and collected sweets, biscuits and snacks.

A car belonging to a foreign tuckshop owner was set alight by the angry mob after they started throwing stones at the residents and opened fire.

Community leader Tshepo Mowelase said the protest was supposed to be peaceful and that they wanted to give tuckshop owners a chance to pack their goods and leave.

“Unfortunately they shot at us, showing that they want to fight. We fought back by removing their goods from the containers.

“This is our community. They found us here and through their low prices, they have killed the locally owned tuckshops.

‘Through this protest we want to rebuild those shops where the local unemployed youth will be employed,” he added.

Resident Moipone Masilela said she was fighting for the safety of residents and children.

“We cannot turn a blind eye when children are dying around us after consuming snacks they bought from these tuckshops.

“Through this protest we are taking back the power and squeezing them out of our community. The safety of our children comes first,” she added.

Kwa-Thema police spokesperson Constable Nkululeko Magudulela confirmed that there was an altercation between the residents and foreign owners during the protest.

“We were able to intervene and dispersed the residents but they soon regrouped and moved to other shops.

“Stock from some of the shops was removed by the police and taken to the police station.

“No one has been arrested or injured. Police are closely monitoring the situation,” he added.