South Africa's Construction 'Mafia' Trains Sights On Local Govt

A growing extortion "mafia" is sweeping across South Africa, crippling construction and small businesses with threats and bribes, and more recently killing political ward councillors if demands aren't met, write Godfrey Mulaudzi and Lizette Lancaster for the Institute for Security Studies.

These groups, active for the past five years, are likely to pose a threat to new councillors and municipal officials after the November 1, 2021 local government elections. This in turn could further erode the rule of law, local economic development and the country's democracy.

Extortion groups typically demand a "protection fee' from local business owners in the form of a portion of the cost of an infrastructure project, or that specific individuals are recruited to work on the site. If this is refused, the groups retaliate by attacking their targets, damaging and disrupting their operations or intimidating staff.

In cities such as Tshwane in Gauteng Province, the protection fee is colloquially known as a '30%' - a reference to the proportional subcontracting requirement in the Treasury's 2017 Preferential Procurement Regulations. These directives aim to transform the economy by empowering historically disadvantaged individuals and small, medium and micro enterprises. They require that winners of state tenders over R30 million, subcontract at least 30% of the contract's value to small local developers to undertake construction work.