Police prevent bloodshed as DA's march to Luthuli House goes smoothly

There was a heavy police presence outside Luthuli House in Johannesburg on Wednesday as thousands of demonstrators, many of them DA supporters, marched to the ANC headquarters to relay their frustrations at the ongoing energy crisis.
Image: Thabo Tshabalala

As Johannesburg and other parts of the country experienced a heatwave on Wednesday, a sea of blue shirts breezed through the city’s CBD as thousands of demonstrators, many of them DA supporters, embarked on a peaceful march to Luthuli House. 

Men, women, the elderly and even children formed part of the opposition party’s movement from Mary Fitzgerald Square to Luthuli House with the intention of bringing “power to the people” by expressing their frustrations about the energy crisis. 

Young and old relayed stories of how load-shedding affected their lives, from being unable to work from home to having to discard rotting food as fridges remained off for hours. 

Ursula Jacobs, a resident of Moffat View in Johannesburg south, said she nearly lost her husband as his oxygen machine went off during load-shedding. He has a lung disease and needs a steady supply of oxygen.  But after a scheduled load-shedding period ended, the power remained off. 

Jacobs said her husband had to be taken to hospital the next  morning as he was struggling to breathe. 

“He had to stay there for the two weeks we were without power.”

Despite the frustrations expressed by many, the march was peaceful and jovial as thousands of DA members danced and sang along the 1km route march to the ANC headquarters. 

The famous statue of a female protester holding a placard stating “Democracy is dialogue” at Beyers Naudé Square near Luthuli House kept a watchful eye over protesters. 

However there would be no room for dialogue.  

Members of the ANC Youth League had earlier vowed to “defend” Luthuli House against the DA, which it believed should have taken its grievances to Eskom’s Megawatt Park in Sandton. 

ANC spokesperson Pule Mabe said the party had “no time” to accept the DA’s memorandum of demands. 

JMPD and SAPS casspir's led the way for the DA march on Wednesday as thousands of supporters marched to ANC headquarters of Luthuli House in the CBD on Wednesday, January 25, 2023
Image: Orrin Singh

“Officials of the ANC are busy performing other responsibilities. They have been here since early morning waiting ...  but Luthuli House will not be receiving any memorandum. If they bring their memorandum, it will end up at reception. It won’t even be part of our discussions,” Mabe told journalists.

Outside Beyers Naudé Square, DA leader John Steenhuisen addressed supporters in an attempt to spark the spirit of the masses who were evidently sapped of energy under the scorching sun. 

Steenhuisen's address was often drowned out by chants of ANC Youth League members. Hundreds of them marched with intent towards a wire barricade erected by police in anticipation of possible conflict between the two parties.

Their  fury led them to attempt to bypass the police and get through the fence to confront the DA head-on. 

While the barricades held and prevented any direct confrontation, they did not stop certain instigators within the ruling party from attempting to stir up a commotion. 

Carrying sjamboks, sticks and knobkerries, some shouted against the “racist” DA. 

While ANCYL leaders yelled at their members to remain calm, some started lighting fireworks to imitate the sound of stun grenades.

But the group eventually dispersed to attend an energy dialogue held by ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula elsewhere. 

TimesLIVE

Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times. Just R20 for the first month.