Cape Town - Security arrangements have been made and Capetonians have been assured nobody will be prevented from going to work today despite a national shutdown called by the South African Federation of Trade Unions (Saftu) and the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu).
Cape Town will be the scene of two separate actions. The first will be a march by Saftu at 10am, starting from Hanover Street in District 6, and proceeding to the Civic Centre, Provincial Legislature and Parliament, with an expected 1 000 participants.
The federations said the aim of the national shutdown was to avoid an impending economic collapse that had come as a result of rising fuel and food prices, which was impacting millions of working class people around the country.
Saftu’s general-secretary Zwelinzima Vavi said: “The cost of living is rising. Corruption and the neoliberal policies of the ANC have compromised the provision of public services.”
Meanwhile, Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) yesterday issued the results of the Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) for Q2: 2022, which showed that the official unemployment rate was at 33.9%.
Statistician-General Risenga Maluleke said the number of unemployed people increased by 132 000 to 8 million in the second quarter.
The second protest will be in the form of a picket by Cosatu for an estimated 100 participants outside the Passenger Rail Agency of SA (Prasa) building in the city centre.
Cosatu’s march to Prasa will be in demand of a sustainable rail service to workers.
It has called on South Africans to down tools and push back against the government and the private sector for failing to tackle the socio-economic challenges the nation faces.
Cosatu provincial secretary Malvern de Bruyn said: “Cosatu will not prevent people from going to work. We will have our protest in front of Prasa.”
The taxi industry has also said they will not stop anyone from travelling. SA National Taxi Council (Santaco) provincial chairperson Mandla Hermanus said: “Taxis will be available to transport people to work.”
Hermanus said that while Santaco shares Cosatu’s sentiments and supports their action, Santaco Western Cape would not participate in the strike.
Mobility MEC Daylin Mitchell’s spokesperson, Ntomboxolo Makoba-Somdaka, said Cosatu’s demands and what they referred to as the “public transport crisis in the province” were largely due to Metrorail’s failings.
She said Metrorail was a division of Prasa, a public entity owned by the national government, which reported to the national transport minister.
Makoba-Somdaka said: “These challenges and many others are the reasons why MEC Mitchell is reimagining mobility in the Western Cape to respond to the serious failings of Prasa, among other things.”
Meanwhile, political analysts have questioned the value of the nationwide action.
Author Ralph Mathekga said: “While we understand the problems they are protesting against, we must ask if they are being realistic?”
Mathekga said marching or staying away would do nothing apart from adding to the problems that the poor already have to face.
He said people had suffered through the Covid-19 pandemic lockdowns and now as they tried to rebuild the economy, trade unions should be looking for solutions.
With regard to the security outlook for the day, Mayco member for safety and security JP Smith said police were the lead agency on matters relating to public order policing, but the City’s enforcement services would deploy officers in support of the police.
He said they would manage road closures and traffic impacts as the procession moves through the CBD.
Smith appealed to the organisers of the demonstrations to ensure that their members adhered to the conditions set out, and to ensure that proceedings were peaceful.
Smith said: “There have been numerous threatened shutdowns announced by social media over the last few years.
“These have not materialised and intentionally or inadvertently create social media panic and instability.”
He said that while some of the issues referenced in these shutdown notices are legitimate, the approach of creating blockades and disruptions harms the most vulnerable communities and does not contribute to addressing the problems being referenced as the cause of the protest.
The City has said should the public witness any disruptions or imminent threats, they should call the City’s Public Emergency Communication Centre on 021 480 7700 from a cellphone or 107 from a landline.