Sowetans are feeling the pinch of food shortages as most shops are closed due to the fears of looting.
After looting sprees ravaged through Soweto between Sunday and Tuesday, most business owners decided to temporarily close their shops. Others simply had no choice after their shops were ransacked by looters. The result was a devastating shortage of food for locals.
“We don’t even have a place to buy something as simple as bread – all the shops are closed. My mother had to go to South Gate while a friend had to go to the Glen just for some bread,” said Thobekile Kheswa, a resident of Nancefield.
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Some relief did come for Pimville residents through Albany bakery who sold bread from the truck outside Maponya Mall on Wednesday. Although the queue was long, Karabo Phelane said it was worth the wait because other sellers had inflated their prices.
“I don’t mind having to wait like this,” Phelane said while standing in the queue.
“Last night I someone tried to sell a loaf of bread for R25, I thought he was joking but then I saw on social media many using that strategy. It is greedy but the results of looting.”
Slowly though, local businesses returned to operation as tensions around looting eased. Especially in Pimville where community members vowed to protect businesses. On Thursday most shops were open for business.
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