JOHANNESBURG - Residents of Alexandra decided to call it quits on picketing outside the City of Johannesburg regional offices in Sandton on Monday after the city's Mayor Herman Mashaba was unavailable to address them.
Community members braved the cold weather and marched from Alexandra to Sandton regional offices to hand over the memorandum.
They gathered outside the offices singing struggle songs for more than two hours before giving up.
City manager Ndivhoniswani Lukhwareni told the protesters that Mashaba could not address them saying he was busy with other communities. He tried to address the residents but they had none of it.
Residents have planned to meet on Thursday in one of the stadiums in Alexandra to discuss a way forward.
Protesters arriving at the regional offices in Sandton. Video: Brenda Masilela/ANA
Meanwhile, Premier David Makhura took it to Twitter to announce that he will be meeting with the #AlexShutDown Committee on Tuesday and President Cyril Ramaphosa will visit the community on Thursday.
It’s been almost a week since residents embarked on protests calling on the government to take action on their issues.
Scenes outside the region offices in Sandton where protesters are waiting to be addressed by Herman Mashaba.
Video: Brenda Masilela/ANA
Residents say they are tired of lawlessness, poor service delivery and the increasing number of informal structures in the area.