MBABANE: The Lomahasha and Mhlumeni borders linking the Kingdom to Maputo continue to operate, though travellers heading to the Indian ocean city are likely to be confronted with significant challenges along the way.
Ministry of Home Affairs Principal Secretary Nhlanhla Nxumalo confirmed that the borders are operating normally. “We have not been advised of any problems,” he said.
Sources at the Lomahasha border say that even though the borders are open, travellers are scared off by protesters on the Namaacha side. It’s just that at Lomahasha on the Mozambican side, there is the toyi toying that taking place and migrants going to Mozambique are turned back,” an eye witness said.
However, media reports also suggest that Moamba, on the road entering Matola from the Kingdom has become one of the active protest sites.
Closure of the key border so close to the festive season when returning Mozambicans normally flood the roads on their way home, might mean that traffic may be diverted to Eswatini. Already Mpumalanga mines have diverted significant quantities of mineral exports to the railhead at Sidvokodvo for haulage by Eswatini Rail to Maputo.
Protests erupted afresh countrywide over the weekend after presidential candidate Venancio Mondlane who claims to have been cheated of electoral victory and now in hiding, said he had survived an assassination attempt. He asked his supporters to intensify protests should he be killed.
Panicked immigrations staff closed the border on Sunday after protests erupted at the key border town of Ressano Garcia close to the Lebombo/Komatipoort Border with Mpumalanga. South Africa. The demonstrators are reported to have entered the EDM power station and shut power to Maputo. Power was later restored after negotiations.
South Africa transport minister Barbara Greecy who rushed to the Lebombo border yesterday said they have been advised by their Mozambique counterparts that the border would remain closed indefinitely.
Greecy has now ordered mining companies to suspend freight trucks who normally ferry a range of minerals such as coal, bauxite, chrome and other stones to the port city of Maputo. She said they opened border briefly yesterday (Monday) to let in empty South African trucks and motorists trapped inside Mozambique to return home. Conditions for truck drivers caught on the South African side of the border are “very inhumane”, the minister said.
Briefing the media at the border, Greecy said the border is heavily congested.
“This morning (Monday) we opened the border post to allow empty trucks and also passenger vehicles to cross back into South Africa but there has been no crossing of freight vehicles from the south African side since early yesterday morning.”
“To address this challenge my department is working with the cross-border roads transport agency and other law enforcement agencies to resolve this very dire situation. Last night there were reported meeting taking place with the trade associations to request that those who had not yet sent their trucks to the border delay doing so. This is really a plea I would like to make to those engaged in mining. Please delay the trucks at your mining operation. There are places on the road behind us where trucks are queuing three deep and this queue is 20 kilometres,” she said.
“The situation for the drivers here is inhuman. There are no ablution facilities on the side of the road. There is no water and no food. We asked the trucks association to come here to deliver water to their drivers and we have seen some deliveries taking place.”
It is unclear when the border which the minister described as “more active than Beit Bridge” to Zimbabwe will open. “Our border authorities are in touch with their Mozambican counterparts who will advise us when it will be safe to open this border once again.”
The Lebombo Border now carries the highest amount of export freight, higher than Beit Bridge or Grobler’s Post into Botswana. The fact that the Mozambican authorities informed us at 08:00 am yesterday that they would be closing the border post for the foreseeable future has a huge impact on the mining sector.
Jm/today/10.12.2024
