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Johannesburg - The Pikitup strike is a crime against humanity, DA leader Mmusi Maimane told journalists during his tour of Soweto on Wednesday morning.
"Pikitup are holding residents hostage. Now there are rats running all over the place. How can that be? It's a crime against humanity," Maimane said.
The SA Municipal Workers Union (Samwu) went on an unprotected strike about a month ago, to demand a minimum salary of between R9 000 to R10 000.
Around 4 000 workers, affiliated to Samwu, are facing disciplinary hearings for ignoring dismissal notices and two court interdicts issued during the strike.
Maimane said Johannesburg Mayor Parks Tau was failing to handle the situation.
"The reason why Tau cannot deal with Pikitup is because he knows he would be fighting with his alliance partners," he said.
The DA's Johannesburg mayoral candidate, Herman Mashaba, said the Pikitup strike was a strike by the ANC government.
"The strike that we are seeing, subjecting our people to this filth, is actually a strike by the ANC government," Mashaba said.
"Look at the influence of Cosatu in President Jacob Zuma's administration. Look at the number of Cosatu members in Zuma's Cabinet... I'm holding the government responsible. They are the ones running Cosatu," Mashaba told journalists.
