As the investigation into the tragic death of 10-year-old Alexandra resident Lesedi Maaboi continues, Gauteng Finance MEC Lebogang Maile has proposed that a state of emergency may be necessary to address the rising number of fatalities linked to spaza shops.
Additionally, there have been calls for President Cyril Ramaphosa to intervene and take action against establishments selling contaminated food products.
Lesedi Maaboi died on Saturday after apparently eating chips from a local spaza business and suffering from chest symptoms.
Maile defined the situation as a crisis and a crime against humanity. He added that Ramaphosa should declare this a state of emergency.
“We need drastic measures and not just words or reactions after incidents like this,” he said.
Maile made the remarks outside the Maaboi home in Alexandra on Monday.
Several youngsters in townships around the nation have died recently, and many believe this is related to a string of food contamination occurrences.
Several reports have linked these occurrences to eating food from nearby spaza establishments.
The most recent incident involved Lesedi, who was admitted to the hospital after being quite ill, along with her mother and four-year-old brother.
Maile said it was a problem to have poisonous food on the shelves.
“The food is manufactured somewhere, we have to look at the whole value chain,” he said.
He emphasised that once spaza shops have been closed due to non-compliance, community members should inform the authorities if the owners attempt to reopen.
To ensure accountability in the enforcement process, Maile called on law enforcement authorities to provide thorough reports.
kamogelo.moichela@iol.co.za
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