By Palesa Matlala
- Muzi Nkhabinde says Zuma gave every trader one thousand rand while Ramaphosa has not even visited their stalls.
- Food vendors are struggling to sell plates because people cannot afford beef and the bad weather is ruining stock.
Business is bad for the men and women selling goods at the ANC’s big meeting in Boksburg.
The traders say they are making a loss and they miss the days when former president Jacob Zuma was in charge.
Muzi Nkhabinde, who is 45 years old, says things were better before.
“We were remembering Jacob Zuma,” he told Scrolla.Africa. “That man would walk stall to stall and give each trader R1,000 because he understood our struggle.”
Nkhabinde says President Cyril Ramaphosa has not visited them once at the Birchwood Hotel.
The numbers tell a sad story. Nkhabinde paid R3,000 for his permit and another R2,000 for petrol and food. By the fourth day, he had only made R1,340.
“My stock is full of mud and dust. We are not making anything,” he said.
Even the security guards noticed the difference. A member of the VIP protection unit confirmed that Zuma always made time to walk from stall to stall.
“What we are experiencing now is not what we know,” the guard said.
Food vendor Ntomizodwa Mkhize is also suffering. She used to sell 100 plates of food a day at these events. This time, she only sold 15.
“People are avoiding beef because it’s too expensive,” she said.
With Christmas coming, Mkhize is worried about paying school fees and feeding her family. She hopes the weather and sales will improve before the conference ends on Thursday.
Pictured above: Ramaphosa at the ANC event.
Image source: @MYANC
