Law and order have been restored in Mthatha after police returned the firearms they had confiscated from the Border Alliance Taxi Association (Bata), whose members had hijacked trucks and blocked all vehicle entrances to the city.
On Monday, Mthatha came to a standstill. No one could travel to work, schoolchildren could not write their exams, and the casting of special votes was disrupted.
Taxi drivers embarked on a massive protest after police confiscated 38 pistols and five rifles belonging to bodyguards who were protecting Bata taxi bosses who had been wounded when their convoy was attacked between Nqanqarhu and Tsolo last Wednesday.
The taxi alliance members hijacked trucks and used them to block all entrances to the heart of Mthatha.
Bata officials demanded the return of their weapons by the end of the day and threatened no voting would occur on 29 May if this did not happen.
SAPS and the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) restored order and calmed the situation.
However, to achieve this, the police had to submit to Bata’s demand to return their weapons.
AbaThembu King Buyelekhaya Dalindyebo took part in the negotiations to return the firearms to the Bata bodyguards.
Police spokesperson Colonel Priscilla Naidu said that the firearms underwent ballistic tests on Saturday and were handed back to Bata officials on Monday.
She said five suspects were arrested after shots were fired at police personnel.
The chairperson of the Mthatha Bata branch, Mthuthuzeli Sogoni, said the bodyguards wanted their firearms returned “so we can protect our leaders”.
Eastern Cape transport department spokesperson Unathi Binqose said law enforcement officers, including members of the SANDF, were monitoring developments closely.
He said rescue teams were continuing to clear some debris from yesterday’s violent protests “that were characterised by running battles between the police and protesters and mass looting of delivery trucks”.
Operations had also resumed at the Mthatha Airport after five armed men stormed the premises amid the taxi-related unrest, Binqose said.
Pictured above: A truck transporting 10,000 EFF T-shirts and IEC voting material was looted during the unrest in Mthatha on Monday.
Image source: X
