The City labels Lamontville protests as unlawful
eThekwini Municipality has condemned the burning of buildings and state vehicles by protestors in Lamontville, south of Durban.
It's described the service delivery demonstrations as unlawful and embarrassing.
During the unrest, a ward councillor's office was set alight, so was a clinic and six vehicles belonging to Social Development and Metro Police. Protesters also torched and tried to loot a truck on South Coast Road.
The city's Msawakhe Mayisela says the issue's about illegal electricity connections in informal settlements:
Mayisela says they were complaining that the informal settlement was the reason for the burst of their transformer because of illegal connections.
"It's a serious problem that we are experiencing in EThekwini and there are quite a number of areas that have been on the receiving end of this unlawful conduct but never the less, our electricians are on the ground have been on the ground to ensure that they return the situation to normal."
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Mayisela says they're doing their best to improve service delivery and has asked community members to bear with them.
"There are quite a number of people that are moving from the rural areas to the city in search of opportunities but the truth is the city will not be able to provide houses to people, provide infrastructure for basic services for everyone overnight," he adds.
"It requires that we work together under the very limited resources that we are having at our disposal."
