Chicken workers deliver heart-felt message of Christmas misery to Zuma

A PETITION calling for President Zuma to rescue the chicken industry was delivered by the FairPlay anti-dumping advocacy movement this week.

Addressed to President Zuma, Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa and ministers Rob Davies (DTI) and Senzeni Zokwana of the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (Daff), the petition makes a heart-felt plea for intervention.

It reads: “There are only a few weeks left until Christmas, but it will be a Christmas of misery for the thousands of men and women who have been stranded without jobs for most of 2017, while no plans have been announced to stop the dumping that caused the crisis.”

FairPlay, founded by businessman and philanthropist Francois Baird, has been working tirelessly to bring about change by putting pressure on government, and bringing together experts, thought leaders and the various stakeholders in the industry to apply their minds to possible solutions. “The government appointed a task-team last November – a year ago – and still we are no closer to knowing what serious interventions are planned to prevent the demise of this incredibly valuable home-grown industry,” said Baird. FairPlay has been joined in its efforts by powerful and diverse supporters, ranging from KFC to the Food and Allied Workers Union.

FairPlay hopes the petition, signed by more than 8 000 people, will open a dialogue with government that will bring about action to stop dumping. – Staff Reporter