The City of Johannesburg has partnered with Vodacom to create a toll free SMS line for those affected by the recent wave of xenophobic attacks which started in KwaZulu-Natal and have since spread to Gauteng.
On Monday Johannesburg Mayor Parks Tau said the SMS line was created to speed up aid to those affected by the violence.
He said a joint operations centre was set up in Sandton, and comprises of police and emergency services teams.
“We now have a cellphone based platform which is *134*422# from any cellphone,” said Tau.
To date, 307 suspects have been arrested in connection with the attacks on foreign nationals and inciting violence across the country.
Officials said seven people, three of whom are South African, have died as a result of the incidents.
Speaking from Luthuli House in Johannesburg today, President Jacob Zuma said it was a mistake to think the Constitution document would solve all the country’s problems post-apartheid.
“We did not explain our struggle, for which we are partly to blame. We did not explain who helped us, we all failed, all of us as individuals, organisations, churches, individuals to explain what freedom he means,” said Zuma.
“We did not attend to what we were supposed to attend to. We believed that the Constitution as a document will solve everything. That was a big mistake.”
“We need to start afresh…we need to be united and reverse the damage we have done,”he told reporters, adding he was speaking as a member of the African National Congress (ANC) and not a statesman.
On Monday Johannesburg Mayor Parks Tau said the SMS line was created to speed up aid to those affected by the violence.
He said a joint operations centre was set up in Sandton, and comprises of police and emergency services teams.
“We now have a cellphone based platform which is *134*422# from any cellphone,” said Tau.
To date, 307 suspects have been arrested in connection with the attacks on foreign nationals and inciting violence across the country.
Officials said seven people, three of whom are South African, have died as a result of the incidents.
Speaking from Luthuli House in Johannesburg today, President Jacob Zuma said it was a mistake to think the Constitution document would solve all the country’s problems post-apartheid.
“We did not explain our struggle, for which we are partly to blame. We did not explain who helped us, we all failed, all of us as individuals, organisations, churches, individuals to explain what freedom he means,” said Zuma.
“We did not attend to what we were supposed to attend to. We believed that the Constitution as a document will solve everything. That was a big mistake.”
“We need to start afresh…we need to be united and reverse the damage we have done,”he told reporters, adding he was speaking as a member of the African National Congress (ANC) and not a statesman.
