Leaders of Operation Dudula and other organisational groups have banded together to put local spaza stores back in the hands of South Africans.
Following the deaths of six Naledi children who consumed snacks tainted with what officials have confirmed to be organophosphate poisoning, there has been a recent surge in the number of children reported to have food poisoning in parts of Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Free State, and Limpopo.
Through the formation of a coalition to supervise the process, the programme is a part of several community, civil society, and political organisations, including Operation Dudula.
One of the proud owners of a fully-stocked shop is Maphoka Mohalanyane from Naledi, Soweto.
In an interview with The Star on Thursday, Mohalanyane disclosed that she had previously owned her store and had to close it when immigrants took over the area.
“Today is a beautiful day for me as I am now an owner of my shop. I used to have my own shop but because of challenges, l lost my shop in the process. The good thing about the products here is that they are not like those of the spaza shops owned by immigrants. Our children will be safe because we sell genuine products,” she said.
Speaking on the return of the spaza shop economy back into the hands of the people, Operation Dudula leader, Zandile Dubula, said this is a victory for locals who have been marginalised in their own country.
“Today, we are in Naledi to launch this programme to protect the township economy, which has for a long time been taken over by undocumented foreigners. We will be launching this programme and take a tour of the shops that are being unveiled today. The plan is to ensure that every shop that has been run by foreign nationals is returned to the local people,” she said.
Thuso Nethononda, who manufactures and distributes his brand of maize meal, indicated that his business is booming and his product is ready to dominate the market.
“The name of my maize meal brand is Namandla Maize Meal and has been in existence since 2021. We are already available and making business, and we want to ensure that all the spaza shops stock our products as this is a very good and quality product,” he said.
Happy Mihlapi, who is the secretary general of the In Defence of Township Economy, said all pressure groups are now speaking in one voice to ensure that South Africans benefit from the spaza shop economy.
“We are saying while we are busy taking out illegal foreigners from the spaza shops, there should be no gap. We call on business people and associations to come and assist the landlords with training, accreditation as well as monitoring and evaluation. We are also partnering with food distribution networks with stock,” she said.
The Star