Dear residents
It is common knowledge that the area around the Queen Street taxi rank towards Shoprite precinct is notorious for unacceptable high levels of littering and crime.
Last week the office of the Executive Mayor convened a meeting of shopkeepers and residents of this area to get suggestions from them on how to keep their area clean and reduce crime in the precinct
Ninety five notices for the 5.30pm meeting were hand delivered to shop owners, tenants and residents and around 30 people attended, along with a large contingent from the Grahamstown Police Station led by Station Commander Colonel Mbulelo Pika.
It emerged that there are three community structures central to resolving problems in this area:
- The Informal Traders Forum
- The Foreign Nationals Committee and
- The Community Safety Forum
It was resolved that they need to meet urgently and come up with proposals to make the area cleaner and safer. Suggestions included:
- A clean-up campaign.
- Stray animals need to be removed from the streets and sent to the Ndlambe pound.
- The Municipality must apply its own by-laws to deal with unlicensed businesses, unsightly buildings and excessive noise.
- There should be a strong police presence to arrest dealers selling drugs in broad daylight.
- Environmental interns should continue to educate the public on the need to keep our environment clean.
- The municipality should collect rubbish early, before the arrival of the stray donkeys, dogs and cattle that destroy rubbish bags and scatter the contents.
- Each shop owner should clean their shop-front regularly.
If we act on these suggestions, it will be a start towards our goal of a clean city.
- Mzukisi Mpahlwa
Makana Executive Mayor
