Cape Town - The cost of repairing damage caused during the service delivery protests in Cape Town is R13 million and climbing.
Mayor Patricia de Lille revealed the latest figures for the costs of the violent protests that have spread through the city.
De Lille said those threatening to make Cape Town “ungovernable” were “thugs”.
The millions needed to repair the damage could have been used to provide services to those who needed it most, De Lille said during yesterday’s full council meeting.
The city has accused the ANC Youth League of orchestrating the violent protests.
De Lille said the city was still counting the cost of the unrest. The bill so far was R13m and included:
- R6m for road repairs.
- R4.5m to fix traffic signals.
- R1.5m to repair toilets that had been “destroyed”.
- R1m paid in overtime to metro police officers.
“A lot of money is being paid in overtime. But since the metro police [have been] in areas where there are service delivery protests, crime in other areas [has been] increasing.”
In her opening address, De Lille said Cape Town had among the highest levels of service delivery. Tony Ehrenreich, leader of the ANC caucus, said the city had the most protests.
Cape Argus