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Chaos erupted in the North West capital, Mahikeng, this week when protests against Premier Supra Mahumapelo turned violent.
The protests were led by a group called the North West Business Forum, which accuses Mahumapelo of manipulating tenders and directing government business to friends and relatives.
The group was joined by taxi owners, who fear a new bus system will harm their operations.
The premier’s office and the provincial ANC have dismissed the allegations and claim the protests are being orchestrated by Mahumapelo’s political rivals and businessmen who hogged government business before he became premier last year.
On Friday, the group gathered near a McDonald’s outlet that is partly owned by Mahumapelo’s wife. Responding to threats that the outlet would be burnt down, a crowd of ANC Youth League members loyal to Mahumapelo rushed to protect the property and a clash broke out between the two groups.
A youth league member was seriously injured during the fracas. Police fired stun grenades to break up the fighting and disperse the crowd.
Taxi drivers blockaded all roads leading in and out of Mahikeng.
Business Forum member Sello Mogodiri, a former Mahikeng municipal manager, said there was “anarchy” in procurement processes. He said the forum was in possession of evidence to prove allegations of corruption and maladministration against Mahumapelo.
Mogodiri also threatened that they would further reveal Mahumapelo’s business interests.
“We have no issues with Mahumapelo personally, but rather with his conduct, which borders on corruption and maladministration. If the premier wants to be a businessman, he must resign so that we can compete fairly,” he said.
Mahumapelo’s spokesperson, Sam Mokaila, said the protests were being driven by “a clique of people with political motives who want to take control of government and procurement”.
Mokaila challenged the group to produce evidence to support their claims and then take the evidence to law enforcement agencies.
“The premier is not empowered to preside over the awarding of tenders. These people are intending to cause instability with the hope that the premier will be brought down,” Mokaila said.
ANC North West secretary Dakota Legoete said the group consisted of “opportunists who want tenders from government by hook or crook”.
“This group has motives that had nothing to do with business, but only concealed political undertones,” said Legoete.
ANC Youth League provincial secretary Sipho Dial said they wanted to protect the McDonald’s after they were alerted to the threats.
Dial blamed the protests on “greedy propagandists” and “very rich tenderpreneurs who are politically opposed to the premier”.
Mahumapelo was re-elected as chairperson of the ANC North West earlier this year. ANC leaders hoped the conference would end the factionalism that was crippling governance in the province.
But provincial leaders believe those who lost out to Mahumapelo’s faction were stoking the protests.
A senior ANC member said: “Not everyone was happy with Mahumapelo’s re-election, which has already resulted in some casualties of people losing positions and some being blacklisted from being tender beneficiaries. There is certainly nothing but pure politics, underlined by politics of the stomach, that is at play here. People want to be part of those eating and, when they are not, they fight.”
