Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Residents tell city what is needed
Suggest priorities for the next five years
AS CITY officials prepare the next integrated development plan (IDP), a five-year strategy with budget priorities, locals have the right to offer input on how their taxes are spent.
The City of Cape Town recently held a number of public participation meetings to hear from the public what should be prioritised for the 2017 to 2022 IDP.
An online survey was also implemented, running until earlier this week.
It asked locals to select their top two priorities “for making Cape Town a more successful city”.
Among these were a reliable and efficient transport system, an environment that creates jobs, building more integrated communities and using digital technology to advance the city.
The survey also focused on how Cape Town could build its “image as the place to do business”.
Residents were asked to select from options on how the city could achieve this goal.
These options included investing in skills the economy needs, creating work opportunities for young people, enhancing the city’s digital infrastructure and making Cape Town more energy-secure.
During the last IDP period, the city spent cash on rolling out free wireless internet access in public spaces and encouraging local energy suppliers to counter power cuts from national electricity supplier Eskom.
Other survey questions focused on how city officials could make Cape Town an “increasingly safe city”, and “even more of a caring city”.
Weekend Argus spoke to people in various parts of the city to gauge what they are concerned about and crime, homelessness, unemployment, health care and public transport emerged as priorities.
lives in Khayelitsha and works with non- profit group Box Girls, which empowers young women through boxing.
“Our girls who are at primary school have homework but we don’t have enough tutors who can help them with that. There are girls whose parents didn’t even go to school so they can’t help their children.
“We need a bigger or renovated library in our area as well. We hold our homework clubs in the library but it’s too small. We have 150 girls or more every Saturday coming to assist each other.”
She also wants to see a park with an outside gym.
“We need youth centres where young people can meet instead of just sitting at home or getting involved in drugs or alcohol. They get bored.
“We need to get young people in our area involved in projects that are positive and help build their lives.”
an unemployed mother of four children, has one granddaughter and lives in Mitchells Plain.
Her focus was on public health.
“The staff at the clinic and hospital need to learn how to relate and communicate with people. Elderly people sit for hours at the day hospital waiting for help. The staff don’t help people.
“I don’t know if they are understaffed but they have a ridiculous attitude. They have no patience or empathy with people.”
She was also concerned about safety in Mitchells Plain.
“We need police, especially at bus stops. Women stand waiting for a bus in fear of what can happen to them.
“Police also need to be more active on the weekends when crime goes up. The crime is so bad we live in paranoia. You don’t know when you will hear another gunshot.”
Parks for children were also not safe, she said.
“People drink alcohol and do drugs in the parks. Where must our children play? The city can do youth training programmes for people in our area. Young people are all just sitting at home becoming drug addicts or end up in jail.”
works as a supervisor at a chain store in Canal Walk and lives with her mother in Mitchells Plain.
She said she used public transport every day and it needed to be improved.
“We don’t have MyCiTi bus stops near our house so I take three taxis every day to get to work. It’s not convenient.
“I have to leave home 4.30am to get to work by 8am.”
The city also needed to help parents who couldn’t afford to pay school fees.
“In our area, you see many young children running around instead of going to school.
We have lived in this house for 16 years and I haven’t seen any improvements in our area.
“And we don’t even see any police in the area.”
lives in Gardens and works as an interior architect in central Cape Town.
“I walk to work every day and I notice, especially on Kloof Street, there are a lot of homeless people and beggars. Something needs to be done about that. The city needs to help people.
“When I walk home, especially, there are at least three people asking for money, food or clothes.”
O’Shea was also concerned about congestion in the city, and the parking shortage.
“The city is very congested and it’s getting worse. It seems like more and more people are moving to the city centre.
If the city had a bicycle rental project then fewer people would drive cars.”
Crime and muggings in the city and surrounding areas were also becoming the norm.
“My cousin was mugged and her friend’s finger was broken when they were attacked. Her bag and phone was stolen. The city should prioritise crime.”
is a project manager for non-profit Awqaf SA and lives in Rylands.
“Rylands is a hotspot for crime. We need more visible policing in our area. The police seem under-resourced.
“The city also needs to improve the local clinic. It needs a permanent manager instead of a new manager every few months. It’s getting worse. The staff are really rude and they seem discontented at work.”
Abdullah also suggested the city introduce educational programmes for people needing financial advice.
“They need this now especially during the festive season because there are many loan sharks and people are making debt.”
The MyCiTi bus service should also be extended to Klipfontein Road, and the Athlone Stadium should be revamped so more events could be hosted there.
“It would be good if the city council could also have a budget to fix its own buildings. We work in townships where people use council buildings and they are in a bad state,” Abdullah said.
yazeed.kamaldien@inl.co.za