The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) in Limpopo led a march to the Polokwane Municipality on Tuesday, protesting crippling service delivery issues and the alleged prioritization of foreign nationals for jobs and business opportunities. The demonstration, however, took a contentious turn when marchers refused to hand over their memorandum to a municipal representative, demanding instead that Executive Mayor John Mpe receive it personally.
Protesters, dressed in the EFF’s signature red, voiced their frustration over exorbitant water and electricity bills, which they pay despite receiving unreliable services.
“We are here to fight for our rights because we are suffering,” said one marcher. “We don’t have water and our electricity bills are very high. Even when we pay, they keep going high.”
A central point of outrage for the EFF is the appointment of a Zimbabwean national as the head of the water and sanitation department. The party argues that while it champions a borderless Africa, local citizens must be prioritized for municipal jobs and contracts.
“The issue of supply chain and the issue of Africa as one… the local people must benefit first,” said a march organizer. “We don’t say we don’t want them… We say we must be able to be one as Africa. And then from there, when we go to municipalities, we must prioritize the local people and business.”
The march saw an unlikely alliance, with opposition party Action SA joining despite ideological differences. A representative for Action SA stated they participated because residents are directly affected by municipal mismanagement. The party distanced itself from the EFF’s pan-Africanist stance, reiterating its own policy of “jobs for South Africans” and opposition to illegal immigration.
Tensions escalated at the handover ceremony. Marchers rejected the municipality’s delegated representative, MMC Councillor Ysef Perma, insisting that Mayor Mpe avail himself to receive their demands.
The municipality expressed frustration with the refusal. A representative stated that the mayor was “pressed in an equally important engagement” and that the delegated councillor was authorized to receive the memorandum on his behalf. The municipality affirmed it is “ready to engage the marchers on their demands.”
In a related matter, Action SA confirmed they have opened a criminal case regarding the issues last month but are yet to be contacted by investigators to give evidence.
The standoff highlights the complex and often volatile intersection of service delivery failures, local economic pressures, and immigration politics in South Africa.