Free State police spokesperson, Motantsi Makhele, tells OFM News that in addition to roads in Thabong being barricaded with burning tyres and stones, shops owned by foreign nationals in the area were also viciously looted. 

At this stage, police are yet to provide an exact tally of the shops looted. The situation remains tense on Monday morning, however, Public Order Policing are on the ground, keeping a close watch over crowds who are protesting in pockets.

Other reported instances of public violence include the pelting of passing vehicles in Constantia Road with stones. Makhele says Public Order Policing are managing to clear affected roads of protesting residents to ensure that traffic is flowing freely. No arrests have been made as yet. This is a developing story.

Last week, Sedibeng Water announced that activities at its Balkfontein Water Treatment Plant had to be temporarily halted due to the failure of the water board’s supplier delivering ferric chloride in time. 

The Matjhabeng Local Municipality distanced itself from the drama, telling local media the problem lay squarely with Sedibeng Water’s supplier and was not a non-payment problem on their part. In April 2021, a similar problem pertaining to the procurement and delivery of chlorine gas was reported and residents in Matjhabeng, which includes Odendaalsrus, Welkom, Hennenman, and Virginia, were left without water. At the time, Sedibeng Water blamed the situation on Matjhabeng’s R4 billion water bill, which they said affected the time-sensitive procurement of chlorine gas.

The unrest comes as an organisation, known as the Matjhabeng Community Foundation, has in recent weeks been threatening to shut down Welkom, should the embattled Matjhabeng mayor, Nkosinjani Speelman, not vacate office as outlined in their list of demands. The organisation argues that under Speelman, service delivery by the municipality has deteriorated quite significantly.

OFM News/Olebogeng Motse and Isaac Mosia