Cape Town - The Blue Downs Magistrate’s Court has withdrawn all charges against an informal trader who was charged by the City for operating without a permit.
Kuils River informal trader Ettienne Gideons appeared in court on Tuesday after he was fined by the City for having an expired trader’s permit on January 14.
Paul Bester, national director of membership for SA Informal Traders Alliance (Saita), who represented Gideons, said it was time for the City and other municipalities to stop harassing informal traders and micro-businesses with expired permits, and rather assist them to succeed and flourish.
Bester said those businesses are incubators for jobs and entrepreneurship, and contribute a third of all jobs in the country, forming the backbone of the economy.
“It is inconceivable that they are treated so poorly. What is required is an urgent and significant re-think in the way they are treated by the government, law enforcement and municipalities,” he said.
He said Gideons was fined at the time when President Cyril Ramaphosa implemented a permit waiver, which is valid until December 31, 2022.
In August 2020, Ramaphosa announced the relaxation of permit requirements for traders until the end of 2022.
This followed a directive published by former Minister of Small Business Development Khumbudzo Ntshavheni on July 15, 2020.
An extension was given to all informal traders whose permits had expired, or who began trading and were unable to apply for business trading permits due to lockdown regulations.
When the Cape Argus approached the City of Cape Town for comment, it did not respond by the time of publication.
Bester said Gideons has been a trader for more than 10 years. He said on January 14, he was trading in a designated, legal trading area outside a speciality store in the City when he was fined for having an expired traders’ permit.
Gideons sold fruits and vegetables, dairy products, chips, sweets, cold drinks, cigarettes and other tobacco products.