- KwaMpumuza residents near Pietermaritzburg boycotted the 2021 local elections, saying the government ignored their concerns about crime and illegal immigrants.
- The Independent Electoral Commission confirmed a councillor chosen by only 100 voters still governs all 3,000 KwaMpumuza residents who boycotted.
Three thousand residents of KwaMpumuza, near Pietermaritzburg in KwaZulu-Natal, boycotted the 2021 local government elections. They said the government was ignoring their concerns about crime, illegal immigration and other social problems.
Only 100 people voted. The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) approved the result, and the councillor chosen by those 100 voters took office. That person still governs all 3,000 residents.
Ntombifuthi Masinga of the IEC told journalists this week that the boycott had a direct negative effect on the community.
“The situation of KwaMpumuza saw about 3,000 people boycotting elections but only 100 managed to vote. The person who was voted in is still in the office governing even those who didn’t vote,” Masinga said.
KwaMpumuza residents still want the government to address their concerns. An imbizo convened by Inkosi Khethokuhle Zondi last year showed that approximately 3,000 foreign nationals lived in the area. Only 18 had valid documents.
The traditional council gave undocumented people seven days to leave. This caused high tensions in the area.
Parents of pupils at Entokozweni Special School in KwaMpumuza blocked roads to protest against broken school buses. They said they would continue until reliable transport was provided.
Residents raised concerns about drug-related activity, the exploitation of local women and the sale of counterfeit or expired food.
Protests in the area were linked to high unemployment. Locals demanded that jobs in factories and businesses go to South Africans rather than undocumented immigrants.
Pictured above: KZN IEC boss Ntombifuthi Masinga.
Image source: IEC
