By Sihle Mavuso
The March and March Movement has changed tactics in its spirited bid to force the government to kick out illegal immigrants from the country.
The movement has now announced that, since the government has proven it has the money and resources to address the matter, it will stage pickets across the country every Thursday until the government listens.
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The latest tactic was announced by the leader of the anti-illegal immigration movement Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma, in Durban on Wednesday, where there was a protest march. She stressed that South Africans should be prioritised, not foreign nationals.
She also said there is nothing xenophobic with their demands that schools should cater for South African kids first, and so should hospitals and all the sectors like the spaza shops should be returned to locals.
“Since we have not been given the answers we wanted, in the next six months, I understand 7000 or so of them (illegal immigrants) have left or they are around 50 000 now. If we do calculations and look at the number of them here, 50 000 is too little.
“We have since seen that our government has drones; they have these cars that can do surveillance capabilities. So, for the next six months, we want that equipment to be used to remove foreign nationals who are in South Africa illegally. From building to building mabahambe (they must go),” she said.
She stressed that the government should start with notorious areas like Point in Durban, which are known for selling drugs and having brothels.
“We have known drug dens, so why is the government not acting?” she asked.
Turning to the R600 million that was allocated by the government to contain the protest, she said since the money is there, there should be weekly pickets.
“Guys, from now on, in the entire South Africa, for as long as they have not left, every Thursday we march. You hear me, this means that next Thursday we will march, the next Thursday we march and we do so on the next Thursday until we run out of Thursday because we are not yielding in our call that they (illegal immigrants) should leave.
“We hope that the government has another R600 million because for as long as we have places like this one (Point area) where they sell drugs in broad daylight, we will not stop.”
At the same protest march, the mayor of eThekwini, Cyril Xaba, and the deputy minister of police, Cassel Mathale, both from the ANC, were booed and prevented from giving brief speeches before accepting and signing the memorandum.
Attempts by Lawyer Xolani Zuma and Nkosikhona Phakelumthakathi Ndabandaba to pacify the protestors and allow them to speak to them fell on deaf ears, and they were repeatedly booed.
The protest was incident free as no looting or violence was recorded.
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