Businesses in Mthatha are suffering from extortion syndicates that are creating chaos in the Eastern Cape town.
This has resulted in many businesses closing their doors due to the crime, which extortionists are calling a “protection fee”.
Because of how bad things are, a lot of employees have been told not to report to work because syndicates were threatening to harm people if they did not get their way.
A large contingent of police officers have been deployed in the area to fight this crime that is aimed at destabilising businesses in Mthatha.
The head of the parliamentary portfolio committee on police, Ian Cameron, expressed his serious concerns about the extortion syndicate as a result of these incidents.
The livelihoods of the locals are impacted, according to Cameron, by the direct harm that these syndicates cause as well as the impunity with which they operate.
“It is patently unacceptable that businesses in the area are harassed to the point of closing down as a result of the operation of these syndicates,” Cameron said.
“The South African Police Service must put in measures to protect businesses and the people of the Eastern Cape against these criminals.”
Fear of violence
People in the area live in fear due to the illegal operations of these syndicates, causing instability.
Some residents think that this will inspire the community to rebel and fight back against extortionists because it is bringing their lives to a complete stop.
“The boldness of these syndicates is worrying in the context of the current economic challenges South Africa faces.
:The continued extortion operations will contribute to internal migration, which will in turn break down family structures and intensify the twin challenges of poverty and unemployment,” said Cameron.
According to business owners Sunday World spoke with, Mthatha will become a ghost town as a result of this chaos.
“We are running our businesses out of fear as we are forced to pay money to extortionists, claiming that the money is a protection fee,” said a local business owner.
“These syndicates have been operational for years now, and when we report to the police, we are told that they are investigating.
“However, look where we are now. There was a point where we knew that businesses would revolt as they had lost a lot of money to these syndicates.”
Economy impacted
Another business owner expressed concern about having to close their doors, citing how this also impacted the economy and the services those businesses offered.
“We are dealing with a group of criminals aiming to destabilise our economy,” said the business owner.
“This has brought fear to us, as we are not sure if the police are dedicated to doing their job properly.
“We live in fear, and we hope that this can be dealt with properly.”
AbaThembu King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo also expressed concern about syndicates, claiming that they were also targeting schools.
He said that he was prepared to die while protecting his people.
“If these extortionists want to fight me, they must come to my place. I am prepared to die for peace to prevail in Mthatha,” said King Dalindyebo.
“I will not be killed by young boys like these extortionists.”
