Communities must stop blocking registration of spaza shops: Government

By Johnathan Paoli

The national government has appealed to members of the public to desist in disturbing the process of registration for legitimate business owners.

Government Communication and Information System spokesperson Nomonde Mnukwa said on Wednesday that while the registration of spaza shops and other SMMEs has steadily commenced, there were concerns about isolated incidents of disruptions, especially in areas around Soweto.

She said that lawful joint inspections were ongoing across the country. They were being led by multidisciplinary teams composed of experts and officials from various departments, state bodies and law enforcement agencies.

“We would like to emphasise that the law allows every shop owner who is a legitimate trader and who meets the legal requirements to own a business in the republic to register a business and trade,” Mnukwa said.

She said that in the processing of the applications, the government would ensure that every legal prescript was