ANC: Political intervention needed in coloured communities

The ANC and its alliance partners marched on Friday to demand quality services for the city’s residents.

The march was attended by hundreds of ANC members and supporters, who were bussed in from various destinations in Johannesburg.

Marchers went to Eskom, the office of Premier David Makhura and the office of Mayor Herman Mashaba to hand over memorandums of demand.

ANC Joburg Chairperson Jeff Makhubo says adding more police in the area, may not be the only situation.

“We are worried about gangsterism, we are worried about the instability-happening in Westbury, Newcleare, Bosmont and Eldorado Park. We don’t think that amaBerete is the only situation. AmaBerete is a solution to root out criminals, to root out crime. However we need a political solution in those areas, the residents of those areas need political solutions too,” he said.

Coloured communities across Johannesburg took to the streets again on Friday as part of the so-called #ShutdownGauteng campaign.

They claim that they are being excluded in participating meaningfully in the country’s economy.  

The protest action has seen Police Minister Bheki Cele deploy more officers and a Tactical Response Unit to deal with the high-crime rate in the communities.  

The complaints include drugs and gangsterism in the area.

The ANC’s deputy provincial chair Panyaza Lesufi says service delivery in the province should not be based on skin colour.

“We must never, never allow our people to be divided along pride to say these ones are coloured, these ones are black and these ones are Indians. We are all Africans and we deserve respect and we deserve services along the racial lines.”

Lesufi vowed that the ANC in Gauteng will visit the areas affected by protest action.