Residents of Tzaneen have given the Department of Home Affairs and the police an ultimatum to remove all illegal immigrants working on local farms and deport them to their respective countries.
They also gave the authorities another ultimatum to close all spaza shops operated by foreign nationals and allow them to be run by South Africans.
These demands were included in a memorandum they handed over to Home Affairs officials and police officers outside Tzaneen Police Station on Tuesday, 30 June 2026.
The residents, led by ActionSA MP Lerato Ngobeni and local ActionSA leader Dr Mike Ramothwala, first gathered outside the Spur restaurant next to the Tzaneen Showgrounds before marching to the CBD, where they delivered the memorandum as part of their participation in the June 30 national shutdown against illegal immigrants.
Addressing the protesters, Ramothwala said there was a proliferation of shops run by illegal immigrants.
“These people are selling expired, rotten and poisonous food to our children,” he said.
Ramothwala also said they wanted to visit these shops and farms, accompanied by the police, to remove illegal foreigners.
He further alleged that some illegal foreigners were committing crimes in South Africa.
Addressing the crowd, Ngobeni echoed Ramothwala’s sentiments, calling on local companies to hire South Africans.
“We are saying spaza shops for locals. We are saying they must go. We are tired. We have been patient for far too long,” she said.
Ngobeni said they would gather at the Beitbridge border next week to ensure that Malawians who are being deported indeed leave South Africa.
Captain Masenamela, representing the police, said authorities would study the demands contained in the memorandum and respond accordingly.
The protesters then proceeded to the Greater Tzaneen Municipality offices to hand over another memorandum to the newly elected mayor, Odas Ngobeni. However, when they arrived, Ngobeni was nowhere to be found.
The protesters gathered outside the municipal building and waited for him to arrive and receive the memorandum.
