Residents Torch Foreign Owned Spazas After Mpumalanga Boy, 6, Dies, Cops Heighten Visibility

• Community members in Delmas went on the rampage as they burnt down spaza shops belonging to foreign nationals
• The vigilantism was in response to a six-year-old's death from suspected food poisoning after consuming snacks
• The police arrested two residents and charged them with public violence while increasing visibility in the community

NELSPRUIT — Police heightened visibility in Delmas, Mpumalanga, when an angry community went on the rampage, burning down two foreign-owned spaza shops after a six-year-old boy died from suspected food poisoning.

The incident, late on Thursday, 28 November 2024, came after enraged residents took to the streets, indiscriminately going after spazas that they suspected.

Delmas residents torch foreign-owned spazas

Provincial police spokesperson Captain Magonseni Nkosi said the victim had allegedly come home complaining of stomach pains.

"His parents [noticed] white foam [coming from] his mouth. He told them that he had bought and eaten biscuits from a local spaza," said Nkosi.

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"The child was rushed to the hospital, where the medical staff declared him dead on arrival. Afterwards, residents set alight two foreign-owned spaza shops in retaliation."

Police arrested two suspects and charged them with public violence. They are expected to appear in the Delmas Magistrate's Court on 2 December.

Visibility has since been intensified in the area.

Meanwhile, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced intensifying efforts to improve food safety nationwide during his annual National Council of Provinces (NCOP) address on 28 November.

He said authorities had visited nearly 200,000 spaza shops since announcing crackdown measures on 15 November.

"Multi-disciplinary teams have been conducting inspections of spaza shops across the country. More than 1,000, including supermarkets and warehouses, have been shut down," said Ramaphosa.

"The authorities have confiscated large quantities of goods and issued numerous fines for violations of by-laws."

Spaza shops closed, fines issued

In related news, Briefly News reported that President Cyril Ramaphosa revealed that over 1,000 spaza shops, among others, had been shut down since he announced measures to curb food poisoning incidents.

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Ramaphosa pointed out that the spike in cases after the government declared it a national threat warranted urgent and decisive action.

Source: Briefly News