Pineapple brewer let off the hook at taxi rank

MBOMBELA – Hardly a week after the provincial commissioner warned people not to brew and sell homemade beer, a woman was caught red-handed at the Nelspruit taxi tank on Freedom Day.

Mpumalanga News  got a tip- off about hawkers who were allegedly selling cooked food at the rank.

Upon arrival, it was discovered that the drivers had in fact bought meat to braai for themselves since the sales of cooked food is banned.

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According to one of the law enforcement officers, who also responded to the tip-off, the woman was selling pineapple brewed alcohol in two-liter bottles. She was put in a police van.

Officials from the taxi association expressed dismay at the suspect’s operation that it was denting their good name as an association.

Mpumalanga News left the scene with a lot of questions lingering in their minds on how they did not notice the woman because she was selling openly in front of them?

Provincial police spokesperson, Brigadier Leonard Hlathi said he was not aware of the incident and that according to the local police station, no arrests were made.

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Speaking to one of the taxi drivers, he also said this reflects bad on them and pleaded with others to comply to the lockdown regulations.

“ We have been complying here in this rank for the past weeks. Now it seems as though we do not listen which gives us drivers a bad image. We are just trying to make means to eat because we cannot function properly on empty stomachs,” he said.