Informal traders in Marabastad have threatened to resist future City of Tshwane operations aimed at clamping down on businesses that are non-complaint with municipal by-laws.

The Unified South African Traders, an informal traders’ organisation, issued the statement after the city’s mayor, Nasiphi Moya, led an operation that resulted in the closure of the Marabastad Retail Market last week.

The organisation’s chairperson Ramodike Morena said: “We have had enough. We will challenge her (Moya) next time she comes leading an operation. We won’t be oppressed by ActionSA, which is using by-law enforcement as a pretext for electioneering.”

The city said the market was closed because traders operated without a certificate of acceptability to handle food.

Morena slammed the city’s decision to shut down the fresh produce market, citing that the closure negatively affected both hawkers and the public across Tshwane’s seven regions.

The retail market is a vital source of fresh produce for most people in the metro, including township residents who rely on selling fruits and vegetables for their livelihood, he said. 

He accused Moya and MMC for Spatial Planning and Economic Development, Sarah Mabotsa, of not consulting with informal traders’ leadership before closing the market, calling it “totally wrong”.

In a council sitting on Thursday, the DA filed an urgent motion proposing a thorough investigation into vendors across all Tshwane markets, but it was unsuccessful. 

DA councillor Pogiso Muthimunye warned that the livelihoods of traders in Marabastad are under threat, saying the closure could lead to disinvestment, loss of investor confidence, and gross unemployment.

He urged the council to consider the city’s high unemployment rate and sluggish economic growth, highlighting the market’s five-decade history of intergenerational trading.

Mabotsa defended the closure, citing non-compliance with trading permits, health and safety regulations. 

She said traders had been informed to contact the city’s local economic development office to obtain trading permits. 

The market comprises 49 stalls and a tea room, with 48 stalls under five-year leases from December 2023 and one lease being finalised.

In a recent development, informal traders secured a court order from the Gauteng High Court in Pretoria, requiring them to submit all necessary applications to the city by August 8, 2025. 

Mabotsa said traders must attend a compulsory workshop on street trading in Tshwane and comply with fire and health safety regulations to obtain trading permits.

Moya defended the closure, saying by-laws exist to protect residents and business operations.

“The mayoral committee has taken a decision to accelerate its priority objective of maintaining a clean and safe city,” she said.

rapula.moatshe@inl.co.za

Source link