Government has appealed to South Africans not to block those people who want to register their spaza shops.
This follows President Cyril Ramaphosa’s call for all spaza shops and food-handling facilities to register with their respective municipalities as part of decisive measures to address the recurring foodborne illnesses that have claimed the lives of children across the country.
The interventions, the President explained, include getting hazardous pesticides off the street, protecting children from exposure to these substances, and the prevention of future outbreaks.
To ensure compliance, the President ordered that all spaza shops and food-handling facilities must register with their respective municipalities within 21 days.
Speaking during a media briefing hosted by Ministers leading the multidisciplinary teams in government responsible for the national response to instances of foodborne illnesses, Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) Minister, Velenkosini Hlabisa, appealed to the people of South Africa not to take the law into their own hands.
“We know some of them might have seen something wrong being done by South Africans assisting foreign nationals to register the spaza shops, but our call and our request [is] let us not take the law into our hands,” Hlabisa said.
Hlabisa assured that the system was not going to allow a spaza shop to be operated by a foreign national, even if the spaza shop is registered by a South African and given to a foreign national to operate.
“A person whom we registered as the owner of a spaza shop, is the one who must operate the spaza shop. If a person opts to allow another person to operate his or her spaza shop, [they] will have to go back to the municipality and get the approval.
“That is why we are appealing to the law enforcement agencies to assist in dealing with those who want to take the law into their hands…but that must be the last thing to do,” Hlabisa said.
READ I Government simplifies the process to apply for spaza shop permits
Hlabisa maintained that the 21 days given to the owners to register their businesses is sufficient.
“It takes only one day to register a business [and] people must not wait until the last day to register. If you want to do it on day 21, you might have some outstanding documents and cannot register.
“Twenty-one days is enough, but the call is go and register your business today, not tomorrow, then you won’t have a problem in terms of 21 days...it will be done,” the Minister assured.
The government has introduced a new standard draft by-law for township economies, which offers a simplified permitting and registration process.
The move is aimed at creating an enabling environment for small businesses in townships and supports conomic inclusion, job creation and community empowerment.
The by-law was issued in accordance with the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act of 2000 by the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs on 7 November 2024. – SAnews.gov.za
