EFF FTLM calls for reopening of closed mines
Burgersfort
Dozens of Economic Freedom fighters (EFF) members have marched to the Fetakgomo Tubatse Local Municipality (FTLM) offices in Burgersfort last week Friday, to demand the re-opening of closed local mines and community involvement.
The party was calling for the reopening of Black Chrome Mine in Ga-Maroga Village, which was liquidated two years ago and Twickenham Mine in Ditobeleng Village, which was closed five years back due to maintenance purposes.
March Convener, Edward Phasha, said the party is worried about high unemployment rate since the two mines stopped operating, affecting about 8000 people who lost their jobs after the closure.
“Mining is an important industry in South Africa, but it is also an industry with a damaging impact because communities struggle to defend their rights to their land, environment and their resources when faced with mining in their community,” he said.
Phasha said they were also complaining about the delay in the issuing of mining permits to local people.
“We are concerned that the mining companies promise employment, business opportunities and development, which is unusual for the affected communities to see those benefits,” explained Phasha.
He said their main concern is the incompliance of the mining companies to the laws that apply to mining and infringement of the community’s economic right.
“On this basis, as a collective, we demand all the mines in FTLM to comply with the principal act and the provision of the mining charter, particularly with the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA),” he said.
Phasha indicated that the party demands the community to participate in terms of ownership of the mines, procurement and enterprise development, beneficiation, employment, human resource development, mine community development and the immediate reopening of Twickenham and Black Chrome Mines.
“Through this march, we are aiming to pass the message to Department of Mineral Resources and Energy in Limpopo, mining owners and investors that we are the owners of the wealth of Sekhukhune. We don’t deserve to be spectators on our land and we say enough is enough with economic hardships and white monopoly capital,” he said.
Phasha said they expect response of the memorandum within 14 working days.
