Africa-Press – South-Africa. Three suspected illegal miners who have been arrested in Zimimpilo, next to Riverlea, Johannesburg, say police are targeting the small fry instead of going after the big fish.
The men were arrested when they emerged from one of several holes police were monitoring in the informal settlement as part of efforts to tackle illegal mining. They smiled and greeted when they saw Police Minister Bheki Cele waiting on the other side of the hole.
He confirmed that zama zamas had reopened one of the holes police had closed.
“This tells us that we need to be more professional [in closing the holes]. We can’t just put soil only to cover those holes. There are other holes that were closed professionally. We are talking to the department responsible for that,” Cele added.
“Before that, we need to wipe the place. We need to get all these people. Some of them are far more than 100 that we have collected. We need to continue ensuring that most are found with their guns and all equipment used for illegal mining,” he said.
Cele added that specialised units were delivering results.
He said there were other operations in other parts of the country that were targeted at illegal miners.
The minister is expected to address an imbizo in Riverlea.
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