Warnings for illegal business operators
WARNING tickets were dished out yesterday to 25 business owners trading illegally in Korsten.
The businesses are run by hawkers operating from containers in Cottrell Street, Durban Road and at the Highfield Road taxi rank.
The warnings were handed out by Ward 11 councillor Abraham Isaacs and Nelson Mandela Bay waste management official Yousef Cassim.
They were joined by the metro police and SAPS members.
The tickets give the business owners 21 days to obtain a permit or their containers will be confiscated.
It would cost them R6 000 to retrieve the containers from the municipality.
“We need to ensure that the businesses are trading legally in this area because we find that many are owned by foreigners, which results in arguments,” Isaacs said.
“I don’t want to see any xenophobic attacks take place in the metro.”
The illegal traders had now been given time to obtain permits, he said.
But many of the business owners questioned the purpose of the permits and warning tickets.
Hairdresser Zelda Khoza, 43, said she had been trading at the Highfield Road taxi rank for seven years.
“I know I am here illegally but no one has asked me for papers in the past seven years.”
She said she was happy to pay for a permit. “This is my bread and butter. I do not have anywhere else to go.”
Marvin Muhijuka, 39, said he had been trading in the container on Cottrell Street for five months and was unaware he needed a permit.
“This is a big problem for me because what if I can’t get my permit?
“I have five children I must provide for,” he said.
Isaacs vowed to be back in 21 days to check on the permits.