JOHANNESBURG - South Africa is rich in natural minerals. South Africans will never miss the opportunity to try to get their hands on it with the hope of changing their and their families' fortunes.
In 2018, residents of KwaMachi in Harding, KwaZulu-Natal, thought they had struck gold when some shiny material was 'discovered' in the area.
In the truest sense of 'all that glitters is not gold', the shiny material turned out to be 'fool's gold'. Generally, pyrite, known as an iron sulfide mineral, could be mistaken for gold.
It is the most common sulfide mineral on Earth. It is renowned for its pale brass-yellow color, metallic luster, and high-density, cubic, or octahedral crystal structures, which have caused it to be historically mistaken for real gold.
In 2021, residents stormed KwaHlati outside of Ladysmith after a herdsman allegedly found diamonds where his cattle were grazing. Thousands flocked the area, hoping to strike it rich.
READ: Excitement or illusion? Expert questions Springs gold rush
Geo-scientists and the government confirmed, however, that the rocks were quartz. Though not completely worthless, they were not what locals hoped for.
"Aspirant artisanal and small-scale minders are encouraged to engage directly with the department," says Ntsoko.
This is in order to explore lawful means to get the necessary permits and contribute to safe, environmentally responsible and sustainable mining practices, says Ntsoko.
'It is a terrible indictment our country,' says SAFTU general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi.
'This talks to the crisis at hand of unemployment, of desperation, of structural crisis of poverty, inequality and of people believing anything,' he adds.
Like the previous incidents, a rumour spread on Tuesday in Springs, in Johannesburg's East Rand of someone having found seven grams of gold in a kraal in the informal settlement of Gugulethu.
READ: IN PICS |Armed with spades and buckets, residents hunt for gold in Springs
Many came from far and wide to try their luck and some fortune.
A woman said she arrived at the site on Wednesday after hearing others were already digging. She claimed she found gold, which she later sold to buy food for her children.
"This is so painful," says Vavi.
Vavi says that this speaks to the failure of governance.
"Where is government when this is happening?" he says.
Law enforcement are keeping close watch on activities in the informal settlement and say operations will clear out by the end of the week.