In a classic case of defeating the point so badly that the point goes into the corner and cries for its mommy, recent protests around Cape Town – usually focused on service delivery – have destroyed R2 millon worth of city property, the city has revealed.

News24 reports:

Traffic signs and signals had been vandalised and roads had been damaged by burning tyres, transport and roads mayoral committee member Brett Herron said. The repairs could take up to three months.

Herron said this affected road users’ safety and service delivery, as money allocated for goods and services would now have to be diverted for repairs.

While it must be understood that those protesting are doing so because services promised to them have not been delivered and mass protest is their loudest voice, further damaging city property is massively counter productive. Heron is quoted saying:

We are appealing to protesters to take responsibility for their actions and to conduct their protests peacefully. The senseless destruction of city infrastructure serves no purpose and finds us taking steps backwards instead of forward.

It’s a sad state when the lack of service manifests itself in protests that will end up delaying service delivery even further. If the people who are most effected by the lack of service feel that only violent, destructive protests will get them heard, that, perhaps, is even sadder.

[Source: News24]