By Buziwe Nocuze
· Extortionists told parents to take their children elsewhere after a crèche owner refused to pay a monthly protection fee.
· Some soup kitchens that feed poor children are also being forced to pay, leaving families hungry and desperate.
Crèches and soup kitchens in the Marikana informal settlement in Cape Town are being forced to close down by extortionists demanding money.
Crèche owners say they are being told to pay R1,500 every month or face deadly consequences.
One mother, who has two children, said parents were warned to take their kids to other crèches because the owner could no longer operate.
“She told us that these men came to her, demanding R1,500 a month. When she said she didn’t have it, they gave her two options: pay or shut down,” said the mother.
“They made it clear that if she refused, they would either hurt her or harm the children to send a message.”
Many parents have now been forced to stay home from work, with no one to care for their children.
“We are pleading with the extortionists to have mercy. We are just parents trying to make a living. Their demands don’t just hurt crèche owners, they hurt us too,” said the mother.
Phumzile Zintonga, a community member, said he didn’t believe the rumours at first, until he saw it happening.
“I was shocked when I heard that they are also targeting soup kitchens, especially those that operate in the same yards as the crèches,” he said.
“These soup kitchens feed poor families and children. Now people are going to bed hungry because they’ve been shut down.”
Zintonga said the extortionists don’t seem to care that most crèches make little to no profit.
“Many of them know the mothers can’t afford to pay much. They run the crèches out of kindness, not for money. And the soup kitchens? They don’t earn anything. They survive on food donations.”
He was horrified to learn that the extortionists had even created a WhatsApp group for local businesses, where they announce increases in their protection fees.
“If this continues, even people with jobs will be forced to pay to survive,” said Zintonga.
Pictured above: Marikana Informal Settlement
Image source: supplied
