Police monitoring the violent situation in Philippi

Lusanda Bill
29 May 2015

The City of Cape Town has condemned the violent protest which erupted in Philippi two days ago and claimed the life of one person.

An initial assessment of the damage show that five city trucks were burnt and three others vandalised and a house of an ANC ward councillor was burnt.

Mayoral Committee Member for Utility Services Ernest Sonnenberg said the total cost of damage is yet to be determined but the vehicle damage alone at this stage is estimated to be well in excess of R10 million.

Sonnenberg said the protestors went on a rampage and threatened our security guards with death and then went ahead and set alight buildings as well as vehicles. They also blocked roads to make sure that the police could not have access to help the law enforcement agencies which was combating the protest action.

“In this process we lost several vehicles which include refuse trucks which are used for refuse removal in the area of Khayelitsha and they also stole the keys of all the other vehicles on the property” Sonnenberg added.