Members of the Emalahleni Civic Organisation have barricaded roads in the mining town demanding that the local municipality terminate its contract with a debt collector.
The organisation claims that the municipality has its own debt collectors and should not have outsourced the service to a private entity.
Emalahleni Civic Organisation spokesperson, Matthew Mhlabane says the private company is threatening to attach their properties.
“The legal team has decided to issue letters [and] SMSes to community members. They threatened community members with legal process and the attachments of their properties, through a sheriff of the court. In the issuing of such SMSes they force community members to pay to a separate account. It means that the municipality is not receiving the money and they [are] forcing even the elderly people … the pensioners to pay amounts over R1000 a month,” explains Mhlabane.
In July, police in Mpumalanga arrested eight suspects during a protest.
Protesters were complaining about petrol and diesel price increases.
The video below is reporting on the July protest:
