The Polokwane Local Municipality has been slammed by the Limpopo High Court for demolishing informal traders’ stalls without any notice.

Mokgadi Monye, Moratho Josias Selepe, and Esther Chokwe succeeded in having the October 2020 demolition of their stalls in the Polokwane central business district (CBD) declared unlawful, reviewed, and set aside.

Limpopo High Court Acting Judge Mark Morgan found that Polokwane Municipal Manager Thuso Nemugumoni and the municipality’s decision to prohibit Monye, Selepe, and Chokwe from trading by instantly demolishing their structures or stalls without any notice and providing a reasonable opportunity to redress the alleged non-compliance or prohibition, was unlawful and thus reviewed it and set it aside.

“The first and second respondent (Nemugumoni and the municipality) are directed to forthwith establish and/or take steps to establish a dispute resolution committee to deal specifically and adequately with matters pertaining to informal traders within its area of jurisdiction, as is permissible in law and not adequately dealt with in its by-laws,” Acting Judge Morgan ruled.

He also ordered Nemugumoni and the municipality to pay the costs of the informal traders’ application.

Monye and Selepe have each been trading for over 22 years in Polokwane CBD, where they operated small street stalls or structures in designated trading areas, selling their wares to earn a modest living.

They are among many others in the informal trading sector, of which the majority are women, who rely on street trading as their primary source of income to support their families and meet basic household needs.

Acting Judge Morgan heard that the informal traders were known to the authorities as longstanding street traders operating in the city, which, through its officials or contractors, and apparently at the direction of the municipal manager conducted an enforcement operation described as a “cleaning campaign” in the Polokwane CBD.

During the operation, officials ordered the informal traders to cease trading immediately and proceeded to demolish or dismantle their trading stalls/structures without warning.

According to the judgment handed down last week, the ostensible reason given by officials was that Monye, Selepe, Chokwe, and others did not possess valid trading permits.

The operation resulted in their ability to trade being brought to an abrupt halt as their structures and stalls were torn down and their means of earning a livelihood effectively destroyed on the spot.

After the demolition of their stalls, the informal traders obtained an interdict stopping the municipality from preventing or obstructing them from conducting their informal trading at their usual sites, pending the final determination of the review application heard by Acting Judge Morgan.

The municipality’s spokesperson, Thipa Selala, has not responded to enquiries.

Meanwhile, on Monday, Gauteng High Court, Johannesburg, Judge Brad Wanless directed the City of Johannesburg to accelerate the verification process and the issuance of permits to qualified informal traders.

This was after the Socio-Economic Rights Institute of SA hauled the municipality to court over its treatment of informal traders operating in its CBD.

The city said the court’s decision highlighted the necessity of establishing a structured and compliant framework for informal traders, ensuring a balanced strategy that fosters economic growth while upholding order and respecting the rights of both residents and businesses.

loyiso.sidimba@inl.co.za

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