Senzo Mchunu, the Minister of Police, together with the Ministry of Defence, are expected to visit Stilfontein, in the North West Province, where a suspected 1,000 – 4000 illegal miners refuse to resurface.
The police (SAPS) said the incident happens at the peak of the Operation Vala Umgodi campaign, a joint effort with the army to stop illegal mining.
“Despite multiple calls, numerous illegal miners have yet to resurface. The visit seeks to interact and engage law enforcement agencies on the ground, engage the North West government and mining leadership, including other relevant stakeholders and to further assess progress on the ground, challenges and work out appropriate responses.”
Makhosonke Buthelezi, Spokesperson of the Department of Mineral Resources, said ” the Department is responsible for regulating and supporting authorised mining activities in the country and where accidents happen in authorised mining companies, the department is able to intervene. We view illegal mining as a criminal activity that must be dealt with by law enforcement agencies accordingly.”