POLOKWANE – The Department of Economic Development, Environment and Tourism (Ledet) says inspection of spaza shops is the responsibility of municipalities’ environmental health inspectors.
Departmental spokesperson Zaid Kalla responded to calls made by the Seshego Community Against Crime and Gangsterism (SCACAG) organisation on behalf of the Seshego community for intervention over the quality of products sold at spaza shops in the area.
Residents in Seshego have started the #DontBuyFromThem hashtag on social media to raise awareness of the quality of food sold from spaza shops that are run mostly by foreign nationals. They say the quality differs from the food sold by retailers.
SCACAG chairperson Vincent Kunutu says the organisation received a number of complaints over the past few weeks over a variety of foods including cold drinks, sweets, canned goods and cleaning products such as dishwashing liquid.
“We are trying to organise an engagement session with Ledet, which is the responsible department for operating licences and compliance.
We want to know what the requirements are for people to open spaza shops and whether these shops are adhering to those requirements,” Kunutu tells BONUS.
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He says if spaza shops continue to operate without being regulated or inspected regularly because they are in rural communities, the department is putting the lives of residents at risk.
Spaza shops will always be the preferred alternative by residents in communities such as Seshego because they are situated close to where people stay and offer products at a much cheaper price.
“It will be difficult to urge people to stop buying from spaza shops. There is one on every street corner. Our people don’t have money to go to the nearest mall or to the city every time they need to buy bread. This is why it is important for the department to ensure that there is compliance and quality assurance.”
Kalla tells BONUS that there hasn’t been any engagement between the department and the organisation yet but that the department always makes sure to follow due procedures.
“The renewal for operating licences is done annually and we work with the local economic development office of the municipality with regard to compliance. Inspection is the responsibility of environmental health inspectors of the affected municipalities,” he concludes.
