"They chased me this morning, because they did not see their salaries. If they would have killed me and they got paid, were they going to wake me up?"
"They chased me this morning, because they did not see their salaries. If they would have killed me and they got paid, were they going to wake me up?"
These were the words of Makana Municipality's acting municipal manager Themba Mnguni hours after he had been attacked by furious municipal workers whose salaries had not been paid at the time.
Mnguni was driving to work this morning, 25 August, when angry workers attacked his vehicle forcing him to flee towards oncoming traffic.
An eye witness who did not want to be named said Mnguni was driving to work when angry workers gathered in front of the city hall attacked him.
"[Mnguni] was driving to work when the workers attacked him. He reversed and tried to park the car higher up the street, but the workers followed the car and tried to open the doors, while others were punching the windows of the car," he said. According to the source, Mnguni had very little time to react.
"The MM turned the car around and sped off towards oncoming traffic," he said. Scores of workers who had not been paid their salaries earlier today had downed tools and gathered in front of the city hall, just before Mnguni arrived at work.
When Grocott's Mail arrived at the scene, traffic officers had closed-off the municipal side of Church Square and municipal workers were standing in front of city hall.
Speaking to Grocott's Mail just hours after he had been chased by the workers, Mnguni said all workers have been paid their salaries this morning.
"As I am speaking to you, the salaries are in. In all the 278 municipalities in South African, payday is on the 25th. Now, just because the money did not reflect by midnight is no reason to strike," said Mnguni adding that Makana was no exception to the Municipal Collective Agreement.
He said if unions want to be taken seriously, they must do things by the book.
"They are not worthy of being listened to if they defy the Collective Agreement," Mnguni said.
South African Municipal Workers Union (Samwu) secretary in Makana Lindelwa Faltein and Municipal spokesperson Yoliswa Ramokolo both confirmed that workers were paid by 9.20am this morning.
Attempts to get answers from mayor Zamuxolo Peter were unsuccessful at the time of going to press.
Read more in Friday's edition of Grocott's Mail.
