Informal traders belonging to the African Traders Organisation (ATO) and the SA Informal Traders Forum (SAITF) have taken the City of Joburg Metro Municipality to court.Image: Boxer Ngwenya
SIYABONGA SITHOLE
Informal traders belonging to the African Traders Organisation (ATO) and the SA Informal Traders Forum (SAITF) took the City of Joburg Metro Municipality to court on Tuesday after being removed from their stalls on De Villiers Street in town.
According to ATO, more than 200 of their members are loitering in the streets after members of the JMPD and other officials ordered them to vacate their stalls last week. This comes as the city says it is enforcing by-laws and verifying permits for trading along De Villiers Street and has called for those affected to come forward and apply for new permits. However, traders say the city is acting in bad faith as it has no intention to see them back in their stalls and has no plan to verify whether they have the right to trade or not.
An affected trader and member of ATO, Alex Ngene, told this newspaper that he and many of his colleagues are now unsure about what will happen to their stalls and whether they will be allowed to trade once the verification process has ended.
“I have been working on De Villiers Street since 2012 and have been paying rent for my stall. How come they are demanding that we give them proof that we are eligible traders when they have our information with them? They can use the same information to find out if we have permits or not,” Ngene said.
The trader, who speaks for more than 100 of his affected colleagues, lamented suggestions that only Nigerians trade on De Villiers as there are South African traders and traders from Zimbabwe and other African countries who belong to ATO who were affected by the removals.
In their submissions to the city, members of ATO said they want to be consulted and involved in the design of stalls and other plans by the city.
“We are waiting for the court case to tell us what is the way forward. We have been paying for cleaners and security from our own pockets as traders and we employ locals and other people in our businesses. We want to be included and be given a platform to be involved in the design of new stalls,” he said.
One Voice Hawkers Association and ATO confirmed that they have made submissions to the City of Joburg for a planned march to the city this week.
ATO, which represents mostly second-hand traders, said they want to be provided with a market-like structure and not buildings or separate shops as their business depends on attracting customers thanks to the “street vibe”.
Julekha Latib of One Voice For All Hawkers Association said consultation with all other organisations representing informal traders was important to find common solutions to problems.
“We support ATO and other traders as they seek to have their views heard by the City of Joburg. The policy is discriminating against immigrants who are now struggling to provide for their families. We are scared that some of them will not be allowed to trade because of the policy,” Latib said.
MMC for Economic Development Nkululeko Mbundu said in a statement that the city had undertaken a process of verifying trading permits from more than 200 informal traders trading within the CBD. Mbundu said following the call for traders to apply for new permits, fewer than 20 traders had come forward.
“We encourage traders who have not presented themselves to do so in good time as this will ensure that they are able to return and conduct their daily business in accordance with the by-laws,” Mbundu said.
Mbundu’s spokesperson, Tamlyn Geldenhuis, confirmed that informal traders belonging to ATO and the ITF had taken the city to court.
“The city is currently studying their founding affidavit. There hasn’t been an outcome yet and the matter is now sub judice and as such we cannot provide a comment further,” she said.