vol1Way before “Amakula” pakistan shop owners came to Katlehong we had our very own shops owned by people we live with around the neighborhood, this shop owners used to give back to the community by helping young people go to school, give groceries to the poor, and make contribution to local ngo’s. It was all good, we all knew where to find our shops, those who live in Motloung would go to Thanda Bantu Shopping Center, those living in Moshoeshoe would go to Mgabudi and those in Nhlapo would go to the Nhlapo Shopping center, no body complained about the distance of the shops from their homes. The only problem though was that this shops opened later in the morning and closed very earlier, making it a hard task for working mothers to prepare a launch box for their little ones and Scaw Metal workers couldn't get their day starter cigarette, this little problem opened an opportunity for Pakistan tuck shop owners. When the Pakistan tuck shop owners came in, they did not go straight to our shopping centers, they went to the street corners of every section so that those going to the shopping centers in the middle of a section would stop by them first and end up not going to the shopping centers any longer. This strategy of Pakistan shop owners was working very well because now shops at the shopping centers ended up shutting down and others running out of stock, those who remained were also benefiting from other businesses so the loss of consumers did not affect them as much as the others.
People in Katlehong were now depending on Amakula, Amakula opened their shops early and closed late, they bought cheap products and sold them for less and they also gave credits to consumers, so they became popular more than imagined. Less did the people of Katlehong know that the Pakistan were not here as friends that are going to help the consumers, they were here to overtake the local economy, they were here to become the bourgeoisie of the townships. They were becoming arrogant, they treated customers like dirt and were now overtaking the houses of which they were tenants on. They did not contribute to any social couse or employ any one from the neighborhood, infact the people they employed were people from Mozambique, who were cheap labor. This only indicates that the pakistan were not for the community of Katlehong, they were against them. It did not take any longer for them to show their true colors, earlier this year they shot a young innocent boy in Nhlapo, then the people realized that they will have to get rid of the enemy now before they take over a lot and do much damage, the people of Nhlapo revolted against the Pakistan shop owners and chased the out of their neighborhood, they even went to Motloung,Maphanga,Moshoeshoe,and credi to chase out the enemy. Now, the garages the Pakistan occupied as their spaza shops are burned and others are left empty, shops at the shopping centers owned by local people are filled and people are buying from them. The question is, what do we do with the empty garages? We have to close the gap so that the pakistan shop owners find no space to occupy when they attempt to come back.
The community of Katlehong, most especially Nhlapo, will have to be united and support local business people who own shops and those who own shops must respect the people and their wishes, they must make their goods affordable and open their shops early because once you open a shop, you must know that your customer's also have a say, empty garages must be filled up by local people, young people have to come together and open up this garages. All sections in Katlehong must wake up, they must chase out the enemy and own their own economy and lives. Pakistanis supported their own, they brought everything they were selling from their own brothers and sisters and still do, we must do the same, chase them out and take back the economy of our townships. Money must rotate within us, we must build our own like other nations. Young people must unite, township people must unite, let us keep our differences aside and work towards a common goal, which is the betterment of our live. Aluta!!
This Article Is Taken From PuaPha Newsletter in Katlehong
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