R65 million – the price tag of service delivery protests

As the country burns and is paralysed by service delivery protests and wage strikes that end in violence, Roodepoort, the West Rand and greater Gauteng is not spared.

Over and above the immediate threat to lives in the often dangerous protests, and residents having to repair houses and replace other valuables, there is an even larger cost that taxpayers carry, which they do not necessarily feel immediately.

Gauteng MEC for Cooperative Governance, Traditional Affairs and Human Settlements Ntombi Mekgwe has issued a stern warning to communities to stop torching public facilities during protest actions as the replacement costs of such facilities are escalating and making it difficult for government to rebuild it immediately. The delays in rebuilding such facilities could result in communities being disadvantaged severely for many years to come. What the MEC fails to say explicitly is that these costs are recovered from those who actually do pay rates and taxes, who are in the minority and are already heavily burdened – the law- abiding citizens.

Mekgwe’s statement comes in the wake of ongoing provincial assessments which estimate damage to public property to be around R65 million in Gauteng alone – and the end is not in sight yet. It is predicted that as we approach the election date, violent service delivery protests will increase.

To read more about this costly trend, read next week’s edition of the Record.