Talks of a national shutdown have been swirling on social media, but what exactly do we know about it?
Is a national shutdown taking place soon?
A wave of frustration washed over social media on Monday after the Department of Mineral Resources and Energy released a statement, confirming another sharp petrol price increase for July 2022.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) described the fuel hike as “a financial and humanitarian crisis.” The opposition party has since launched a ‘slash fuel prices‘ campaign, urging South Africans to join their call in “pushing the ANC government to cut the exorbitant taxes on fuel in order to lower the price of fuel, food and the cost of living.”
“The ANC government has uncaringly abused South Africans through the artificially high fuel price for decades. By cutting taxes and levies on fuel, we can easily reduce the cost of fuel by up to a third,” the party wrote.
Elsewhere on social media, frustrated South Africans rallied up momentum for a national shutdown to take place and while the challenge has gained momentum, no official civic group has stepped forward with a concrete plan to move ahead with the protest.
The South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) has been reeled into the national shutdown but, as things stand, the organisation has distanced itself from all matters related to protests. It seems, the taxi industry’s response to the fuel hike will be increasing fares, as indicated by this driver who was interviewed by Newzroom Afrika on Tuesday morning.
The price of fuel goes up at midnight. This will not only affect the ordinary consumer, but also taxi operators and passengers. @TshegoMoagi_ has more from the Kempton Park Taxi Rank.
— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) July 5, 2022
Watch: https://t.co/lfmbj8AKDt#Newzroom405 #FuelPrices pic.twitter.com/3CT3AXz9aN
Without any official recognition by a civic group, at this juncture, all indications suggest the national shutdown may be an extension of the frustrations felt by South Africans on social media, and not exactly an event likely to take place in the near future.
SAPS’ National Joint Operational and Intelligence Structure (NATJOINTS) may be monitoring online chatter about a national shutdown but, it seems, as things stand, there may be no threat to prepare for.
This is the second time in a month South Africans have threatened to render the country inoperable due to rising petrol prices. In a statement released when murmurs of a national shutdown were rife in June 2022, NATJOINTS had cautioned the public “against spreading such messages that seek to mobilise communities to respond to the shutdown.”
““The NATJOINTS assures members of the public that enforcement of the law will be executed within relevant prescripts to ensure stability in the country,” the lintelligence agency said at the time.
We will continue to track developments around the national shutdown and provide updates as soon as they are available.