'Big chains keep blacks out of loop'

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In a three-pronged court action, the party accuses SABMiller and chain stores Shoprite, Spar, Massmart, Woolworths and Pick n Pay of racial exclusion of black businesses from their supply value chain.

The Department of Trade and Industry is cited as a respondent in all three applications for failing to ensure transformation of the economy as mandated by the constitution.

The little-known party recently attempted to take the South African Rugby Union and Sports Minister Fikile Mbalula to court over a lack of transformation and tried to block the Springboks from participating in the World Cup.

Searches

ANA president Mahlomola Edward Mokhoanatse lodged the three applications, under the Promotion of Equality and Prevention of Unfair Discrimination Act, in the Johannesburg High Court on Thursday and Friday. One of the applications seeks to stop racial profiling, claiming that the big chains' security searches of customers in predominantly black residential areas constitute unfair racial discrimination.

"Some of the stores will not let customers leave the store without checking their shopping bags; customers have to wait in long queues before leaving the store," said Mokhoanatse.

To support its claim, the party has posted a YouTube video on its website that shows customers of all races being allowed to leave Pick n Pay and Shoprite stores in former white suburbs without being searched, while customers at stores in Meadowlands and Dobsonville in Soweto are subjected to checks of till slips against their purchases.

ANA wants the court to declare these practices as unfair racial discrimination, unconstitutional and invalid. It wants the retailers to issue public apologies and pay compensation into an atonement and reparation fund. The listed retailers should be made to share a portion of their procurement divisions with black businesses via a supply development fund.

Retailer feedback

David North, group strategy executive at Pick n Pay, said it had never used racial profiling.

Graham O'Connor, managing director at Spar, said the company treated all its customers the same. "Customers are crucial to us..."

Shoprite said it was not aware of the matter and could comment only once it received court papers.

Massmart spokesman Annaleigh Vallie confirmed that it was practice to verify all purchases when any customer left a store.

Woolworths said: "It is against our policy to conduct parcel searches at the entrance or exit of our stores. We may detain a suspect only when we have proof that the individual took an item, concealed the item and left our store without paying for it, regardless of their race."

Pick n Pay, Massmart, Woolworths and Spar all indicated that they had developed systems to support local suppliers, with preference given to black- and women-owned businesses.

The companies were yet to be served with papers, but indicated they would oppose the application.

Application to stop brewery deal

In a separate application, ANA asks the court to block the estimated trillion-rand takeover deal of SABMiller by Belgian Anheuser-Busch InBev Corporation.

In addition, the party is asking the court to make it an order that black businesses are included in the whole value chain of SABMiller beverages.

"When you look into the entire supply chain of SABMiller operations there are no black suppliers. We are not talking about the truck drivers here, we're talking packaging, distribution and marketing of their products. There are no black farmers supplying hops, bottling or caps," said Mokhoanatse.

SAB corporate communication head Robyn Chalmers said the court application was an "unwarranted attack on SAB" and it regarded statements in the affidavit as "potentially defamatory".

She said there were about 400 SAB owner drivers distributing more than 60% of all SAB products.

"In addition to this, SAB is a strong supporter of preferential procurement and favours suppliers who have demonstrated a tangible and deliverable commitment to broad-based black economic empowerment," Chalmers said.

The DTI did not respond to queries.

Source: The Times via I-net Bridge