The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gauteng says the draft Gauteng Township Economy Bill in its current form discriminates against foreign nationals and perpetrates xenophobia in communities.
The Gauteng government has released the Bill for public comment. The aim of the Bill is to ease the regulatory burden that township based enterprises are facing and to develop the township economy which is valued at R200 billion per year.
The DA says it is deeply concerned that the aim of the Bill is to drive foreign nationals out of the townships.
DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Economic Development Makashule Gana says they are totally against the Bill.
“The Bill itself proposes that it wants to give certain businesses only to South African citizens and people with permanent residence and that is something we believe is against the Constitution and it might fuel Xenophobia in our communities.”
Gana says, “What we should be doing now especially when we look at where the economy is, is how best we leverage from the multitude of people in South Africa and each one of us currently in South Africa can help build the economy.”
