The City of Cape Town wants to apply for an interdict against “those delaying the MyCiTi bus service construction project in Mitchells Plain”, but the Mitchells Plain Integrated Development Forum says it wants the job opportunities promised by the City.

Mayoral Committee Member for Urban Mobility, Rob Quintas, says alleged extortionists from five “development or business forums” have prevented the contractor at the AZ Berman Drive site from continuing the work there.

READ MORE: City to apply for interdict against alleged MyCiTi extortionists

But the forum’s Marshall Nelson says business owners are upset because they’re being excluded from job opportunities. He adds that the City promised jobs to locals but now a big construction company is withholding these jobs.

“Why are the City allowing these [big companies] not to give our local entrepreneurs an opportunity? So now they are actually coming with the excuses of extortion. None of us that was in the meeting with the City of Cape Town and [the other construction company] asked for money, all we asked is there an opportunity for our small businesses to be part of the value chain.”

Nelson says the original agreement between the City, the contractor and the forums was that employment opportunities (as sub-contractors) would be equally shared between community-based entrepreneurs in Mitchells Plain and Khayelithsa.

“We had several meetings with the City of Cape Town since last year September in regard to this particular project in Mitchells Plain. Every time we were promised they going to have inclusivity but there were never [instances] that you can say our people were included.”

Nelson says with high rates of unemployment in communities like Mitchells Plain, opportunities for community involvement in major projects would greatly benefit the residents.