The National Liquor Traders says it is deeply concerned by the incidents that took place in taverns over the weekend in Mpumalanga and Gauteng.
Six men were killed and one injured when attackers opened fire on patrons seated outside a tavern in Daveyton, Ekurhuleni, on Saturday night.
Two people were also killed and 15 others injured in a tavern shooting in KaNyamazane outside Mbombela in Mpumalanga, also at the weekend.
Two suspects wearing balaclavas entered a tavern and opened fire on patrons.
Convenor for the National Liquor Traders, Lucky Ntimane, said they are concerned that these killings could affect the business of taverns.
“We would like to send our heartfelt condolences to the families who have lost their loved ones in these senseless killings that we’ve seen taking place in both Mpumalanga and Gauteng provinces. We are concerned that these incidents take place at our outlets in the township space, but we also understand that a tavern and community is one and the same thing – meaning that if a township has a particular crime problem, that will spill over into our environment. Hence we are concerned that if this is something that we’re going to see a spike of, it means that we don’t have taverns to talk of in the future because our customers are just going to stay away from coming to our establishments.”
In the video below, Mpumalanga MEC for Community Safety, Security and Liaison, Vusi Shongwe, provides an update on the recent mass shooting at a tavern in Mbombela:
