Illegal miners threaten roads in East Joburg

18 April 2016

I am concerned at the report today that illegal gold mining is threatening the safety of motorists using the M2 highway between Denver and Jeppe in east Johannesburg.

According to the Johannesburg Metro Police, there have been attacks on some motorists whose cars have broken down in this area.

There are also fears that the illegal miners will dig under the M2 and cause structural damage to the road.

At one illegal mining site near Cleveland Road, the miners are digging where contractors are laying cables for the intelligent freeway monitoring system.

The Johannesburg Roads Agency says that a security guard had been shot dead and there were incidents of violence in which workers had been robbed of equipment and assaulted.

This is a serious situation that needs a co-ordinated response by the police and city agencies.

The experience in Cape Town has shown that a specialist unit is most effective in tackling this type of problem which includes stopping the theft of materials to be sold as scrap.

Issued by Jack Bloom MPL, DA Johannesburg East Constituency Head, 18 April 2016