JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – SEPTEMBER 05: MKMVA members wearing army clothes guard the entrance into Luthuli House during the #OccupyLuthuliHouse demonstration on September 05, 2016 in in Johannesburg, South Africa. A group, allegedly ANC members protested outside the party’s headquarters, calling for the resignation of President Jacob Zuma and the entire National Executive Committee (NEC). (Photo by Gallo Images / The Times / Alon Skuy)
MKMVA shut down KwaZulu-Natal municipality, demand jobs and tenders
Military veterans say they’ve been sidelined.
JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA – SEPTEMBER 05: MKMVA members wearing army clothes guard the entrance into Luthuli House during the #OccupyLuthuliHouse demonstration on September 05, 2016 in in Johannesburg, South Africa. A group, allegedly ANC members protested outside the party’s headquarters, calling for the resignation of President Jacob Zuma and the entire National Executive Committee (NEC). (Photo by Gallo Images / The Times / Alon Skuy)
A large group of uMkhonto weSizwe Military Veterans Association (MKMVA) members descended on the Msunduzi municipality offices in KwaZulu-Natal on Monday.
According to The Citizen, a number of military veterans are unhappy with the lack of opportunities afforded to them by local government structures.
Municipal staff detained
Staff, on duty at the municipal offices, were prohibited from leaving the city hall premises for over an hour, while the protesters listed their grievances with the local government.
The veterans argued that they had been side-lined and disregarded and demanded that they be recognised for the sacrifices they had made in fighting for the liberation of South Africa.
Part of this recognition, the veterans say, is being afforded access to jobs, tenders and council benefits.
In what can only be described as an ironic contradiction of sorts, the veterans went on to bemoan the fact that municipal appointments were along crony lines; that members experienced in certain sectors were side-lined for friends of the municipality.
One veteran, who has refused to be named, commented on the issue of employment side-lining, saying:
“I have applied for a job in the security division and have not received any response from the municipality, yet I have experience in this field.”
MK veterans meet with the Mayor
Themba Njilo, mayor of the Msunduzi municipality, met with the MKMVA members and received a list of demands.
The city’s manager, Nelisiwe Ngcobo, and security head, Kwenza Khumalo, both attended the meeting between the mayor and military veterans.
Despite hearing out the veterans’ grievances, mayor Njilo argued that tender processes and allocations were outside of the municipality’s mandate, saying:
“When it comes to tenders the municipality has a supply chain management policy and we cannot do anything outside of it.”
This is not the first time MKMVA members have attempted to strong-arm municipalities into providing them with work and financial opportunities. In July, veterans demonstrated in the uMgungundlovu District Municipality, tabling similar demands.
