More security promised for city waste site
STRICTER security measures would have to be implemented at the Arlington waste site to avoid robberies and deaths, Nelson Mandela Bay deputy mayor Mongameli Bobani said yesterday.
Bobani, who is also the city’s political head of public health, visited the tip yesterday to inspect the conditions.
Last week, Walmer township resident Amos Dywili, 54, was crushed to death by a bulldozer while picking through rubbish at the tip.
It emerged yesterday that two men were robbed of their cellphones and one of them was stabbed at the same site on Saturday.
Bobani said yesterday: “We need to improve the security here. After this inspection, I am going to talk with the officials, and the security.
“I have already engaged my counterpart, mayoral committee member for safety and security John Best, about safety issues at this site and others across the city.
“I am pleased to tell you that he has already made a commitment to beef up security and also engage the South African Police Services to assist.
“I’m also going to talk with councillor Best so the metro police can assist in providing security here.”
Bobani said he was concerned that people were robbed when they came to dump their rubbish.
“Every day, we have about 500 cars coming here. We don’t want a situation where we are cleaning the city and people are getting robbed in the process.”
He said the death of Dywili and the incident of robbery were being handled by the police, and he called on them to fast-track the investigation.
He also said the tip was regulated and nobody could simply enter the area to pick up rubbish.
Mveleli Maneli, who earns a living picking though trash, said he was shocked by Dywili’s death but that would not stop him from carrying on.