IFP: MKVA Veterans Must Stop Holding KZN Municipalities to Ransom, Unemployment Affects the Majority

20 August 2018

The IFP condemn protest action by people masquerading as MK veterans who are going around taking over KwaZulu-Natal municipalities threatening to unleash violence if they are not given jobs and tenders. Close to 100 men wearing camouflage colours claiming to be affiliated to uMkhonto weSizwe Military Veterans Association, had taken over Msunduzi District and Richmond municipal offices last week and have promised to spread across to other municipalities.

"This method of doing things by MKVA vets undermines every individual affected by unemployment and lack of funding who also are looking for fair recruitment and SCM processes to get opportunities. People who use violent and self-entitlement tactics to harass the fairness of distribution of opportunities must be harshly dealt with. We as the IFP acknowledge the corruption and fraud involved in public offices when recruiting and giving out tenders but the fact of the matter is that we cannot have a situation where only MKVA vets are prioritized.

In this province we have many young people, some with Masters degrees actively searching for employment using proper systems. Why must MK veterans be put first on the agenda? Does this mean everyone who is unemployed must make a formation and hold the municipality hostage so that they can be employed? Does this also mean that any ANC affiliated people deserve more than the rest of the citizens? Why do they feel entitled or that they are being owed by the state than the rest of the citizens?
It is time that people who illegally demand tenders and jobs be criminally charged for breaching municipality service delivery processes. We are aware that the same ‘veterans’ have in recent months carried out a series of property invasions in the province with very little attempt from government to stop them," said IFP KZN Provincial Spokesperson on Community Safety and Liaison, Mr Blessed Gwala MPL.

"While we understand and sympathise their frustrations with the incompetent government which despite being obliged to assist with jobs, is not doing anything to assist them to escape unemployment and poverty. They must accept that it is not only them whom the ANC fooled by making empty promises, the whole country is burning because the promises have not been met but it does not mean the remedy is hold municipal offices to ransom. We urge them to fully understand that unemployment is endemic in every corner of this country.

Everyone is suffocating from lack of employment and corrupt tendering system that have monopolised opportunities to only ANC close affiliates. The least that veterans can do is to take an active leadership role and invite participation of all unemployed young people to take upon the revolution of demanding change of things in the governance and clean out corruption and looting of state funds by greedy officials," concluded Mr Gwala.

Issued by Blessed Gwala, IFP KZN Provincial Spokesperson on Community Safety and Liaison, 20 August 2018