Eight arrested following spaza shop chaos in Sharpeville

Spaza Shops

Sharpeville — Chaos erupted on the streets of Sharpeville following the death of a local truck shop owner in the area which resulted in the arrest of eight people.

Police spokesperson, Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhulwi, said that the situation was still tense on Thursday evening, with public order police monitoring the area. Five were arrested for public violence and three foreign nationals were also found in possession of illegal firearms, EWN reported.

“The community members looted foreign national tuck-shops and on 16 October 2024, a local businessman was fatally shot while his employee sustained a gunshot wound. The suspects are unknown at this stage.”

Residents were quick to vent their frustrations as they rallied for the return of their local economy, which followed a series of violent incidents that have targeted foreign-owned spaza shops, IOL reported.

Police spokesperson, Colonel Dimakatso Nevhuhlwi, said tensions flared earlier this week when Sharpeville community members started looting the shops owned by foreign nationals.

“The community members looted foreign-owned spaza shops and on 16 October 2024, a local businessman was fatally shot while his employee sustained a gunshot wound. The suspects are unknown at this stage,” Nevhuhulwi confirmed.

Spaza shops throughout the country have become an epidemic as there has been a rising number of food poisoning cases among school kids who have fallen ill and been sent to hospital after consuming goods bought at spaza shops, which has led to widespread outrage.

Among these incidents include 25 learners in Bronkhorstspruit who were sent to hospital this week, 74 matric learners who were discharged from the hospital after falling ill while on a school camp, 35 learners from Malamulele Primary School in Limpopo also fell ill, while six learners from Naledi were also reported dead due to alleged food poisoning.

According to SowetanLIVE, it is alleged that the spaza shop owner was among the residents trying to drive Pakistani nationals out of the township.

“In retaliation, they [spaza owners] ended up shooting and killing a man who owns a lounge, more like a pub, in the area,” said Emfuleni communications manager Makhosonke Sangweni.

According to Sangweni, the community hasn’t complained about the foreign-owned shops before after residents had started chasing foreigners from their shops, claiming they killed children.
He said, the only people who complained were residents of Bophelong, a neighbouring township. He said Bophelong residents complained about food poisoning when they took it upon themselves to drive out foreign shop owners.
“We did have problems in Bophelong but the foreign nationals were removed successfully by members of the community because they were united. The process of by-laws was then kick-started. This process included educating communities about compliance in their spaza shops,” he said.

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Compiled by Matthew Petersen

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