A GROUP of informal farmers are threatening to disrupt the SPCA in Kariega until their demands have been met.
Members of the Makukhanye Rural Movement’s demands include that the SPCA ceases impounding their stray livestock until the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro makes communal land available to them.
“Our members cannot pay the astronomical amounts to get their animals out of the pound. Our animals roam because we do not have land. That is why for the past five years we have been asking the Municipality for land so that our livestock do not need to walk in the streets,” Lazola Jantjies, a representative of the Makukhanye Rural Movement, told Netwerk24.
Although Jantjies said that they did not want to fight with the SPCA, the staff of the SPCA are fearful after that group marched on their offices last week.
“The group of about 40 people completely barricaded our entrance, they wanted to close us up, and they demanded that we receive their memorandum.
“They did not threaten us, but we are afraid of what might happen. We realize that these people are very serious,” said Deirdre Swift, Chairman of the SPCA council in Kariega.
In the memorandum the group describes itself as a social movement that fights for the interests of small-scale and indigent farmers in the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro and Sarah Baartman District Municipality.
The memorandum states further that their members are compelled to farm in residential areas because they have no access to communal land. The group states that their livestock are injured while moving among people’s properties, cause motor accidents and die when they eat plastic lying in the streets.
“We decided to curtail the activities at the SPCA so that our voice, pain and suffering can be heard,” states the memorandum.
The group also demands infrastructure, marking equipment and dipping facilities.
Swift says that stray animals have been a big problem all over the Metro for the past two years. However, the SPCA is not responsible for the impounding of stray animals, and only care for the animals that have been impounded. Swift says she has explained it thus to the group, and told them that their grievances must be discussed with the Municipality.
According to Swift they were forced to receive the memorandum and hand it to the Municipality on the group’s behalf.
“The group said that if they did not receive feedback from the Municipality within seven days, they would return every week until the Municipality answered them. It is disturbing to us, because evidently the Municipality has not yet answered,” said Swift.
Jantjies confirmed that Friday was the seventh day and they had received no feedback. He said that the group would again visit the SPCA if the Municipality provided no feedback.
Kupido Baron, Municipal spokesman, did not respond to enquiries.
