Let’s take back our streets
AKE back your streets and your neighbourhoods, as police cannot be everywhere.”
This was the strong message sent out by deputy mayor Fawzia Peer to the people of Chatsworth. She was speaking at the Chatsworth Youth Centre on Thursday, addressing residents’ concerns about crime following the recent spate of attacks, including the murder of Shallcross father Pathmanathan Ganas, who was shot in the abdomen while trying to protect his wife, Denise, from hijackers.
“Today I met a mother and wife, Mrs Ganas. A wife whose husband was murdered in cold blood. A husband who didn’t succumb to a killer or die from natural causes but was killed by faceless gunmen who hijacked him. It was the most difficult and painful meeting of my life,” said Peer.
Peer also broke her silence about her personal experience as a victim of crime outside her home in Westville. “I was a victim as well. I came from a radio interview one evening at 9pm. Men entered my home in Westville and normally these big security gates take longer to close because they are heavy. As I got into my yard, five men ran behind my car and, at gunpoint, yelled at me to ‘Get out!’. My family were ordered to enter our home at gunpoint. They made off with all my jewellery,” said Peer.
To curb crime, Peer said the community needed to take action.
“We need to actively police our streets to keep them safe as our lives are at stake. Police cannot be everywhere as we have huge areas that require policing. No police force in the world can do this. The community needs to be proactive in stopping crime. We need to stand together. This is why the eThekwini Municipality is working with civil society to explore innovative ways of fighting crime,” said Peer.
“I don’t want to see another life gone. That’s not going to happen. We treasure our lives, spouses and family.”
She asked that metro police, the SAPS and private security companies work together to form a core team that could be immediately sent to “hot spot” areas, said Peer.
“We need to be aggressive this time in our efforts to combat this scourge. It is a disease that seems to have permeated every strata of our society,” she said.
Peer also promised to revive the drug unit at the Metro Police Department.
“We had a highly effective drug unit in the Metro Police Department and for some unknown reason, that unit was shut down but I’m going to revive it. We need to question why this unit was shut down.”
Peer urged community members to become proactive in ending crime.
“CPFs, metro police and councillors need to work together. If metro police do not respond, a written complaint should be sent to my office,” said Peer.
Croftdene CPF chairman Roland Naidoo questioned the involvement of metro police and appealed for a mobile metro unit to assist the communities with crime especially in the Crossmoor area, where he said crime was extremely rife.
Other issues were also raised by locals.
Chatsworth community policing forum executive member Selvan Moodley said speed breakers should be introduced to main roads and roads closer to schools.
“There are three areas that we would like you to look into. Arena Park Drive is such a busy road that children utilise to school. On Fridays, it’s used for drag racing and there many accidents on that road. We had a placard demonstration and sent a lot of references to the municipality appealing for speed bumps,” said Moodley.
Another resident, Cyril Naidoo, spoke about buildings that attracted crime and criminals like the abandoned metro building in Croftdene, Chatsworth.
He pleaded with the deputy mayor to look into this.
Another community member voiced his concerns about taxis, liquor stores and highway pedestrians.
“The metro police know exactly what I am talking about. They (taxis) stop at cross roads and the police drive past them. This happens on a daily basis. The other issue is bottle stores and shebeens are selling liquor to underage children. Trolley loads of liquor are being bought. I have seen the SAPS and metro van crews frequenting shebeens. Do not blame us if we take pictures of them and upload them on social media,” he said.
“Another issue is that pedestrians are crossing at the Higginson Highway. Pedestrians should not be allowed to cross on highways. What are they doing about this? Absolutely nothing!” said a disgruntled Croftdene resident.
Chatsworth CPF chairman Jakes Singh said he was overwhelmed with the response from community members and was certain that promises made would be kept.