Johannesburg’s new by-law enforcement agency aims to tackle food safety crisis
In an effort to intensify its efforts to guarantee public safety and adherence to local laws following incidents of food poisoning, the City of Johannesburg has launched a new and reinvigorated by-law enforcement agency within the Department of Public Safety.
During an inspection of the Devland Cash and Carry in Soweto on Tuesday, MMC for Public Safety, Dr Mgcini Tshwaku, unveiled plans for a revitalised by-law enforcement agency aimed at safeguarding residents and businesses alike.
The inspection was spurred by serious concerns surrounding the establishment’s adherence to safety regulations, leading to a hefty fine of R4 000 for failing to meet several by-law requirements.
The cash and carry, which sells food and groceries to local spaza shops, was found to be lacking an approved safety plan, a requirement deemed critical to avoid hazards, particularly in light of Johannesburg’s troubling history of fires.
“It’s very important because before they could open or do anything, for any building, you need to supply the plan to the Emergency Medical Services so that it can be approved in terms of fire,” Tshwaku stated, highlighting the urgency of compliance.
“As you know, the City of Joburg has been experiencing a lot of fires. We have given them seven days. Normally, if it’s a building like a club or a tavern, with a lot of people moving around, we would’ve closed them immediately.”
Tshwaku’s visit underscores a relentless commitment to enforcing safety standards in the city.
Despite the store manager, Zaheer Paruk, having produced several requested certificates, critical approval stamps were missing from the hand-drawn floor plan presented.
In parallel to these safety inspections, the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) is grappling with an urgent crisis following the tragic deaths of six children attributed to food poisoning from snacks purchased at a Naledi, Soweto, spaza shop.
Following the national Department of Health’s statement that a chemical agent may be responsible for the string of food poisoning cases, Minister of Health Aaron Motsoaledi sent out 80 environmental health professionals to determine the root causes of the food safety emergency.
The incident has caused alarm in Gauteng, Limpopo, KwaZulu-Natal, and the Northern Cape.
Motsoaledi acknowledged the lack of transparency in communication regarding the measures being undertaken, stating: “I think it is because we never called a press conference or they never called a press conference to say ‘this is what we are doing and this is what we know up to so far’.”
The National Consumer Commission has also deployed senior officials to investigate the possibility of a breach of consumer protection regulations.
The SAHRC has committed itself to engaging various stakeholders, gathering data, and coordinating responses at all levels of government to prevent a nationwide crisis unfolding from these isolated incidents.
“We encourage intensity and sustainability to ensure that the current scourge is holistically addressed before it becomes a nationwide crisis,” said spokesperson for the commission, Wisani Baloyi.
Recent incidents of child hospitalisations and deaths linked to products allegedly sourced from foreign-owned spaza shops have sparked widespread outrage, with looting and violence in some parts of the country.
Studies show foreign nationals dominate the spaza shop industry, with 51.5% of shops run by non-South Africans.
On Monday, The Star reported that Gauteng MEC for Economic Development, Lebogang Maile, said his department would take the necessary action amid growing concerns over the risks posed by foreign-owned spaza shops.
“A key concern that has been raised about the township economy is that components of it are increasingly being monopolised by foreign nationals. This is occurring in a context where the South African economy has excluded millions of people, particularly those in townships and other historically disadvantaged areas, at the margins of economic activity, ” Maile said, addressing local business people in Naledi.
The Star
siyabonga.sithole@inl.co.za