By Johnathan Paoli
The Gauteng government and municipalities have agreed on a uniform approach to address the worsening conditions of food contamination within the informal spaza shop industry.
Since the start of this year, 23 people have died and 441 people have been hospitalised due to food contamination, according to a preliminary report from the provincial health department.
Lesufi met mayors, MECs, MMCs and the SAPS on Sunday afternoon to discuss the crisis and what action needs to be taken.
“We all agreed that addressing these issues requires a comprehensive approach involving stricter regulations, better enforcement of existing laws and increased public awareness about the potential dangers associated with purchasing from unregulated spaza shops and informal traders,” he told reporters following the meeting in Johannesburg.
This follows Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa gazetting the Standard Draft By-Law for Township Economies in the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act.
Lesufi confirmed that following a closed session, provincial and municipal officials had agreed to implement the new regulations to ensure that there was no confusion concerning municipalities and their by-laws.
Lesufi said municipalities would also be expected to establish a system for regular health inspections by local health authorities to ensure compliance with food safety regulations.
He called for community awareness campaigns to educate consumers about food safety, signs of spoilage and how to report unsafe practices.
The premier said that while municipalities had until the end of the month to adopt the regulations, it did not stop law enforcement agencies from responding to cases.
“Even though we are waiting for municipalities to take the resolution that we have adopted, law enforcement agencies are not prohibited to act as of tomorrow, or this afternoon. We are not suspending any action on the basis that we are waiting for the adoption of laws. Those adoptions will strengthen our approach,” he said.
Lesufi said a template was being developed to be utilised by hospitals, schools and community healthcare centres to ensure accurate reporting.
Post-mortem results show that seven people tested positive for organophosphates, which is a pesticide.
INSIDE POLITICS
