Rebuild the beloved country
Following a week of mayhem that left a nation reeling, now is the time to pick up the pieces and reclaim the future as only we, South Africans, can
As the news of looting and vandalism of business spread throughout Soweto on Sunday night last week, Thabang Madikila was alerted just before his bedtime that his small business was also not spared.
Madikila is one of number of small business owners who found their business premises broken into and pillaged at Tsele’s Centre in Moletsane, Soweto, after former president Jacob Zuma’s arrest.
Speaking to Sowetan yesterday, Madikila said he had found his internet cafe and stationery shop cleaned out on Sunday night after having been chased by cops and mistaken for one of the looters by the police, who tried to disperse the crowds that had stormed into the shopping centre and left with trolleys carrying stolen items.
“We tried to tell the police that we have a shop there at the shopping centre but they said no-one is allowed inside, then they left and people came back and broke into many other shops beside the supermarkets,” Madikila said.
Ten computers, stationery and photoprocessing machines were some of the goods stolen from his shop. Madikila, 32, had started working for Brascor Printing and Stationers in 2010 until he bought it for R150,000 in 2017. “I made savings and took out a loan and then I bought shares for the shop in 2017 from the owner, who has other businesses around Soweto. It was vandalised in 2018 and they took three computers and some stationery but I managed to replace them. During the hard lockdown, business was very slow and I had to look for a loan because I still had to pay rent,” Madikila said.
He said the looting spree had forced him to consider closing shop if he did not secure another loan to replace the stolen goods and equipment as he did not insure the business.
“This messed me up a lot because I had no savings for this because it is a small township business and I did not think much about insurance after I took over because they are costly to maintain,” Madikila said.
With around R30,000 monthly turnover, Madikila said his profit was just under R10,000 after costs, which included paying a R11,500 rent at the centre and salaries for three employees who would now be let off. He said the theft had cost him about R80,000 and that he was still thinking about how he would try and rebuild the business.
“I am still strategising on how I am going to secure funds to rebuild the business, but now I will not be able to operate for now as I am not even going to pay rent and restock. They did not take some stuff, like the photocopying machine and other things so now I will try working from home while I think about how to get back up,” he said.
Madikila said he would need help with the re-cabling of the premises and computers to help reboot his operations and try and recover the business if he were to continue operating.
“That would get me started again because I know how to operate this business, hence I bought it and kept pushing to grow it beyond being an internet cafe,” he said.