Left to right: Elliot Gama (spaza shop owner), ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba, KZN chairperson Zwakele Mncwango and Lerato Ngobeni, parliamentary chief whip. | ActionSA
Durban — ActionSA is upping the ante in a bid to reclaim economic power for South African citizens, as the party has intensified its #Spaza4Locals campaign, demanding an urgent investigation into spaza shops owned by foreign nationals.
The party’s leader, Herman Mashaba, alongside a high-level delegation, visited KwaMashu, north of Durban, to highlight the need for local entrepreneurship amid rising concerns that the foreign monopoly of these shops threatens the survival of South African businesses.
During a media briefing outside the tuckshop of local entrepreneur Elliot Gama, Mashaba expressed grave concerns about the state of black entrepreneurship over the past 30 years.
“Thirty years into our democratic dispensation, black entrepreneurship in our communities, in the townships, informal settlements and rural areas is under attack, serious attack!” he said.
As part of the campaign’s messaging, Mashaba did not shy away from controversial statements, claiming foreign nationals were selling “poisonous food to our children”.
There was a wave of protests in some parts of Gauteng after pupils took ill, with more than 20 reportedly later dying after allegedly eating food bought from school vendors and local spaza shops.
Mashaba vowed to stand firm in this battle, saying, “I can assure fellow South Africans that I am going to be the last man standing against this.”
The seeds of this campaign were sown during Mashaba’s tenure as mayor of Johannesburg, where he first raised similar issues regarding local economic challenges.
“We need political intervention. I am here to say we are going to use our political privilege to ensure that we do something about this.”
He called for a shift towards legislative action to protect local businesses.
Zwakele Mncwango, ActionSA’s provincial chairperson, has been the driving force behind the party’s push for the government to launch an investigation into foreign-owned tuckshops.
He filed a motion in eThekwini Municipality aimed at addressing these concerns, which faced defeat after an ANC vote against it, while the DA abstained.
His subsequent online petition has garnered over 6000 signatures, pointing to a growing demand for action.
“It is all about solutions, not about problems,” he said.
Highlighting the plight of local business owners, Gama shared his experience as a shopkeeper since 1996.
“Business was good in the beginning, but the problem started when foreign nationals began setting up spaza shops in the township … My shop was the biggest in the area … but now business is not as booming as before,” he said.
Lerato Ngobeni, ActionSA spokesperson and Member of Parliament, reiterated the party’s commitment to presenting solutions to the ongoing crisis facing township economies.
“We have identified the problem. This is the right fight to fight. It’s going to be a heavy fight, but it is one that we are prepared to take forward,” she said.
Ngobeni framed the initiative not as an attack on foreign nationals but as a stand against “lawlessness”.
“We are for South Africa and South Africans.”
She said the township was worth approximately R200 billion.
As part of their proposed reforms, ActionSA was calling for measures that include local ownership guarantees for spaza shops, youth employment initiatives, and skills development for entrepreneurs.
Their ambition is to anchor the township economy firmly in South African hands, with an explicit call for 100% local ownership of spaza shops within high-density areas.
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