“Agri SA welcomes the president’s condemnation last night of the criminality and lawlessness unfolding in certain parts of the country,” says Agri SA president Pierre Vercueil.
“We join the president in condemning the actions of criminals and ask that the president’s instructions be implemented with immediate effect to prevent further criminality. Agri SA welcomes therefore the government’s urgent decision to deploy the Defence Force in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng in support of the police.” Parts of the country are currently under attack by criminals who are destroying infrastructure, with no respect for the law.
“This defiance should not be tolerated by the government, and we urge the police to use all their resources to prevent this criminality from spreading and to arrest the perpetrators.” The criminal conduct is now also affecting agriculture amidst the peak citrus production season, with large volumes of citrus to the value of approximately R592 million having to be transported weekly to the Durban harbour. “Any disruption could lead to financial losses for producers and will prevent the products from reaching international markets on time.
” Agri SA has also received reports that sugarcane fields and other crops have been set alight in KwaZulu[1]Natal. Producers are unable to extinguish the fires as they fear for their lives. The situation has also affected livestock farmers whose feed stocks have been set alight, while various sawmills have also been closed. “Further reports indicate that the police cannot provide producers with the necessary protection and in some instances do not know how to deal with the situation,” says Vercueil. “Agri SA calls urgently on the minister of police to make additional police resources available in the province to assist the producers in preventing further arson attacks.” The situation that South Africa is experiencing at present no longer has anything to do with peaceful protest but is being exploited to destroy the country’s infrastructure and threaten the lives of ordinary citizens. “Agri SA called on citizens to distance themselves from such criminal actions. We now need to build the country’s economy,” says Vercueil.
Verskerpte optrede teen wetsoortreders nou nodig
“Agri SA verwelkom die president se veroordeling gisteraand van die kriminaliteit en wetteloosheid wat in sekere gedeeltes van die land voorkom,” sê Pierre Vercueil, president van Agri SA. “Ons wil aansluit by die president in die veroordeling van die optrede van wetsoortreders en versoek dat die opdragte van die president onmiddellik geïmplementeer moet word om verdere kriminaliteit te verhoed. Agri SA verwelkom daarom die regering se dringende optrede om die weermag in KwaZulu-Natal en Gauteng ter ondersteuning van die polisie te ontplooi.” Gedeeltes van die land verkeer tans onder die aanslag van wetsoortreders wat verwoesting saai aan infrastruktuur en geen ontsag het vir die reg nie. “Die uittarting van die gesag van die regering mag nie geduld word nie en ’n beroep word op die polisie gedoen om alle hulpbronne aan te wend om die verspreiding van die kriminele optrede te verhoed en die skuldiges te arresteer.” Die kriminele optrede raak nou ook die landbou, wat tans in die piek sitrus produksieseisoen. Groot hoeveelhede sitrus ter waarde van ongeveer R592 miljoen moet weekliks na die Durban-hawe vervoer word.
Enige ontwrigting hiervan lei tot finansiële verliese vir produsente en verhoed dat die produk betyds die buitelandse mark bereik. Agri SA ontvang ook berigte uit KwaZulu-Natal van die afbrand van suikerriet- en ander landerye en die produsente kan nie die brande blus uit vrees vir hul lewe. Die situasie raak ook veeboere wie se voervoorraad afgebrand word en verskeie saagmeulens wat gesluit word. Verdere berigte dui ook daarop dat die polisie nie die nodige beskerming aan die produsente kan bied nie en in gevalle nie weet hoe om die situasie te hanteer nie. “Agri SA doen in dié verband ’n dringende beroep op die minister van polisie om addisionele polisie[1]hulpbronne aan die provinsie beskikbaar te stel om die produsente by te staan om verdere brandstigting te verhoed,” versoek Vercueil.
Die kriminaliteit wat Suid-Afrika tans beleef het niks meer te doen met die reg tot vreedsame protes nie, maar word nou gebruik om die land se infrastruktuur te vernietig en gewone landsburgers se lewens te bedreig, sê Vercueil. “Agri SA doen ’n verdere beroep op landsburgers om hulle te distansieer van dié kriminele optrede. Ons het nou nodig om die land se ekonomie op te bou.”
