Three trucks set alight in protest action

Mahikeng - Police have redirected their attention from Lichtenburg to Coligny, a small maize farming town situated between Lichtenburg and Johannesburg in the North West, after three trucks were set alight following protests on Tuesday.

The police's Sabata Mokgwabone said that roads to and from surrounding areas such as Ottosdal, Coligny and Sannieshof were re-opened on Monday afternoon after being barricaded by dissatisfied Lichtenburg protesters protesting over housing and better service delivery.

Four trucks were set alight in the area, including a truck transporting 38 000 chicks on Monday.

Opti Chicks, the company supplying the chicks said in a statement that some of the chicks were thrown off the truck, and were then run over with another truck.

On Tuesday afternoon, protesters looted a liquor store, and allegedly set three trucks alight in Coligny, a few kilometres from Lichtenburg, over an unrelated matter.

"It is quiet here in Lichtenburg, although we are experiencing a challenge of another situation in Coligny, but we have sent our members to the scene," said Mokgwabone.

According to Mokgwabone, the protesters in Coligny are angry about the death of a 12-year-old boy who died in a car accident last week.

"The little boy was injured after he jumped from a farmer's moving vehicle. He died a little while later. We have opened an inquest to determine the circumstances of the death, but the community thinks there is no justice for the child, hence the protests.

"Maybe they should have consulted with us before protesting as we are investigating the matter," said Mokgwabone. - News24

North West province appoints team to investigate violent protest

Johannesburg – North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo on Tuesday appointed a team of five MECs and two mayors to investigate the cause of violent service delivery protests in Lichtenburg and Coligny on Monday and Tuesday.

Premier Mahumapelo in a statement asked protesters to give the team an opportunity to get to the bottom of the community’s concerns.

He urged protesters to refrain from violent and criminal activity which could "hinder growth and development".

CityPress reported that three houses were burnt to the ground in nearby Coligny and shops were looted by protesters on Tuesday morning.

Inside the town’s residential area, white farmers and residents stood at different points guarding the properties after three houses were burnt and damaged earlier this morning.

In Lichtenburg several shops were looted. Three trucks are believed to have been set alight by protesters on Monday.

North West police spokesperson Sabata Mokgwabone told News24 that the two towns were quiet on Tuesday afternoon.He could not confirm if a fire at an irrigation equipment supplier's building on Tuesday evening was in relation to the ongoing protests. "We still have to verify how the building caught flame, but there were no protests on that side of the town," Mokgwabone said.

Mokgwabone said the extent of damage caused by the protest in the two towns will be determined by municipal investigation in the next couple of days.  No additional arrests were made after police arrested seven protesters in Lichtenburg on Monday, Mokgwabone said.- News24