Free State local government minister Joel Mafereka is to visit Frankfort where protesting residents disrupted schools and traffic on Monday, a municipal official said.
The manager of the Mafube municipality, Willy Mahlangu, said of protesting residents: ”They do not want to speak to us as officials; they want to speak to a political head.”
Protesters, apparently unhappy with service delivery in the municipality, have been blocking roads in Mamahadi township with burning tyres and other objects since Sunday.
Mahlangu said he contacted the Free State department of local government and the minister was expected to visit the town at 3pm on Monday.
Police said earlier that some schools in Mamahadi were disrupted on Monday morning as schoolchildren joined the protesters.
”Some schools had been disrupted and children are not attending,” said Constable Christopher Mophiring. ”Police are monitoring the situation, however.”
On Sunday night, 18 residents were arrested for public violence during a protest.
A vehicle and a truck were gutted by a fire on the road between Frankfort and Villiers after the drivers tried to force their way through a roadblock of burning tyres.
Mophiring said the driver of the truck sustained serious injuries and was admitted to a local hospital.
Police are investigating whether protesters at the scene might have assaulted him.
Mahlangu said the protesters were still mobilised in the township, but that police were also on the scene.
Some damage had been done to the old stadium in the township.
The province’s local government department confirmed that the minister would visit Frankfort on Monday afternoon. — Sapa