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Gauteng restaurants, bars and tavern owners who need liquor licences are struggling to submit their applications to the Gauteng Liquor Board (GLB) due load-shedding and a faulty generator.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has received numerous complaints regarding the submission of applications to the GLB’s office in the Johannesburg CBD.

The DA has been reliably informed that there is a backlog of 600 applications at the GLB. In addition, applicants who go directly to the offices have been turned away because the generator is not working.

Applicants are also unable to have any consultations should they have a query about their applications. The GLB is also not conducting any hearings.

This situation is worrying as it forces businesses that want to operate within the parameters of the law to operate illegally. Furthermore, the DA has been warning the Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) for a long time now that load-shedding is having a negative impact on small businesses.

The DA has already submitted questions to the MEC for Economic Development, Tasneem Motara, in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature (GPL) to determine why the GLB does not have a functioning generator, why the offices are closed, and what solutions will be put in place to ensure that this situation is resolved.

Issued by Patrick Atkinson MPL - DA Gauteng Shadow MEC For Economic Development