The workers’ spokesperson, Ernie Mbiza, told The BEAT’s sister newspaper, Die Pos/The Post, that the workers were upset that their salaries were not paid in time.
He said the workers were shocked when they received a notice on Friday 25 May that they should be patient and that they would be paid.
The striking workers demanded that municipal manager, Mapule Mokoko, attend to their grievances.
Photo: Marietjie Steenkamp
Mokoko was not readily available for comment, and was reportedly in Polokwane, at the time of going to print.
After receiving the disputed notice, all hell broke loose as the angry workers emptied dust bins on Nelson Mandela Street.
Stop signs at the corner of Nelson Mandela Street and Fourth Street were also vandalised.
The chanting and singing workers burnt tyres in the vicinity of the local hotel and in front of the Waltkon store.
The protesters did not take kindly to journalists and spectators who attempted to take pictures.
Traffic along the affected streets was diverted by the police into alternative routes.
Mbiza charged that the workers were angry in that their debit orders could not be processed in time, among these their medical bills.
One of the workers, who chose to remain anonymous, said the problem with the late payment of salaries dated back to February, whereby they engaged the municipality about the matter.
In her response, Modimolle-Mookgophong Mayor Marlene van Staden said going forward the authorities would ensure workers would be paid in time.
“Last week the workers were in direct engagements with the municipal manager inside her office about the matter,” she said.
Around 13:00 the workers were engaged in talks with Councillor Hercules Louw and other councillors at the Mookgophong police station.
Workers gathered in small groups, waiting for feedback from the meeting, but still continued to sporadically barricade the streets.
At around 14:00 Mbiza said it was promised the workers would receive their salaries by Tuesday night.
By 15:00 the roads were cleared and traffic moved smoothly through the town, flared uip again the next day.
Residents have reported water supply disruptions, which could be as a result of the strike action.
– The Beat
