Senior Samwu leader linked to Tshwane waste truck torching – Brink
Tshwane Mayor Cilliers Brink says the official was dismissed after video evidence placed him at the scene of the alleged crime.
Brink held a briefing at Tshwane House on Thursday, where he gave an update on the three-month-long wage dispute between the city and workers affiliated with the South African Municipal Workers Union (Samwu).
According to the mayor, the official was identified as the union’s regional deputy chair.
“Video evidence shows a group of people being dropped off on the street. They then proceed to attack the waste truck and set it alight. Finally, they are collected by the same vehicle that dropped them off, and they leave the scene of the crime.
“The vehicle, identified by its make, model and registration number, belongs to the Samwu official. Of course, this evidence had to be checked and the Samwu official’s version of events obtained.”
Brink said given the evidence found by Tshwane’s investigators and the fact that the official in question was unable to give a solid alibi, City Manager Johan Mettler issued him with a letter of dismissal.
The mayor said while the incident was reported to the police, no arrests were made.
He urged national government not to turn a blind eye while calling on Samwu’s leadership to “reflect” on the incident.
“We also once again call on national law enforcement not to treat the criminal assault on the City of Tshwane and our employees as a labour dispute or as an internal security matter but as crimes against the state. If you ignore what is happening in the capital city today, you should not imagine that other parts of the state are immune to the same kind of attack,” Brink warned.
READ: Samwu calls on Tshwane to 'immediately' pay workers’ salary increases
Meanwhile, Samwu dismissed the claims as “yet another attempt by the mayor to tarnish the union’s image” to gain public sympathy at the expense of workers.
In a statement issued on Thursday afternoon, the union’s general secretary, Dumisane Magagula, reiterated earlier assertions that Samwu is not behind the acts of violence.
“We urge the mayor to approach the nearest police station to lay criminal charges. We are, in fact, prepared to accompany the mayor to the police station. He should just inform us when and where; we will be available to accompany him and his team.”
At least 128 workers have been dismissed for their alleged role in the strike, while eight trucks were reportedly torched.
TSHWANE TO APPEAL BARGAINING COUNCIL WAGE DECISION
Workers are demanding a 5.4% wage increase, which was part of a 2021 wage agreement, but the executive mayor has maintained the metro simply doesn’t have the R600 million needed to fund such a pay hike.
They accuse the city of maladministration, citing the damning findings by the auditor-general of R10 billion in irregular expenditure for the 2021/2022 financial year.
The ramifications of the unprotected strike have been felt across the metro since workers took to the streets in July – with rubbish piling up in the streets, water and power outage response times delayed, and bus services suffering several disruptions.
“The City of Tshwane might be an acute case, having been pummelled by the lockdown, load shedding and unlawful administration. But we are not alone. Services in every municipality and province, including services to the poorest of the poor, are being threatened by a ballooning public sector wage bill,” Brink lamented.
His comments came as Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana warned that the government would have to implement urgent measures to rein in government spending.
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These include a moratorium on new public service jobs, spending on infrastructure projects, and managing the public sector wage bill, which makes up a third of total government expenditure.
The council adopted the unfunded budget in June this year, and the city manager applied for an exemption from giving workers their annual salary increases. However, the South African Local Government Bargaining Council dismissed the city’s application.
READ: Tshwane to pay R565m bonuses over three months
Brink says they will be approaching the Labour Appeal Court to try to remedy the deadlock.
“The question that the Labour Appeal Court is going to answer is exactly this – does the city have the money to afford the salary increases? The obvious, objective evidence is that we don’t, and if these increases were to be paid, it would have a financially devastating effect on the city.”
He says should the city lose the case, the matter would have to be taken back to the council for a way forward.
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