Burning ANC shirts, flags and other ANC-branded items in Tumahole on Youth Day, 16 June, caused widespread reaction this week.
But the community claims the action was symbolic, voicing their unhappiness with the government’s failure to deliver municipal services to them.
According to Simon Poole, community activist and member of Kanana Metsipompong, the action started spontaneously with community members realising they had nothing to celebrate on Youth Day, and needed to demonstrate their frustration with ongoing water and electricity problems in Parys, Tumahole and Schonkenville.
He said the action started under the auspices of Kanana, a community organisation of volunteers, but was widely supported.
He said despite their efforts to get answers from the municipality, attending feedback meetings on the water supply issues, specifically, and the handing over of memorandums to raise their concerns, nothing had changed.
The situation left them believing the ANC-led municipality had failed them. He said people wanted to demonstrate that they were tired of empty promises. “We had had enough”.
He said allegations are misleading that the ‘so-called campaign’ of people in the Free State burning ANC T-shirts was in support of former ANC leader Ace Magashule, and that it was not a “well-orchestrated and well-planned move to influence society in a particular direction as was alledged. Poole said these allegations are untrue. He also said the action was not to challenge the ANC on their internal politics.
He said they only wanted water in their taps, not politics.
“This was a symbol of people’s anger and disappointment,” he said
Addressing the media in KwaZulu-Natal during an ANC workshop on the South African Limited Amendment Bill on Saturday, ANC secretary general Fikile Mbalula said the party was convinced that most of those involved in the action are not members of the party and only want to cause confusion among members. The party said it was committed to service delivery and appealed to members to stay focussed.
