The Alberton North problem

ALBERTON North, situated just off Alberton’s CBD, has been a concern for residents of Alberton for quite some time now.

The area has been experiencing severe decay leading to it being considered one of the most dangerous areas in the Southern Johannesburg area. Symptoms of the decay include both municipal and crime problems that contribute to the area being an eyesore for both residents and businesses that make their living in the area. Through various interviews, with especially business owners, it is clear that Alberton North is only going one way – downwards.

Infrastructure

The streets of Alberton North have degraded to such an extent that anyone entering the area considers it unsightly and pavements are also in dire need of attention and repair.

Streets are riddled with potholes, especially within the business district. Attempts at repairs are made but the general state of the roads is worsening. Sidewalks are left damaged and cracked with no visible signs of repair happening.

Infrastructure in the area has been severely neglected. Areas are left without light due to malfunctioning street lamps leaving the areas dark and dangerous.

A problem with refuse removal being delayed has also been reported by residents. Areas are littered with rubbish including alcohol bottles. A problem of public urination leaves a foul smell in the CBD.

“There is a general disregard for property among people living here,” says a concerned resident who did not want to be named.

“People leave the area in a state and no one cares to clean up.”

“I can clearly see the conditions getting worse by the year,” said Thys Mostert, who has owned a store in Alberton North for 18 years. Concerns raised include the perception of possible customers. Store owners worry that people will not be inclined to visit an area they consider to be unsightly.

Informal settlement

Alberton North is home to two informal settlements. Both of these are situated on government land. One is on a property belonging to Prasa and the other one on land that falls under the ownership of the Department of Education. Residences are not a recent addition to the area and have been around for about 15 years. However, lately, there has been an influx of people moving to the area which includes a large foreign contingent. The people calling these informal residences home are from a range of different demographics and age groups.

Due to the land belonging to government organisations, the occupation of the said land is illegal.

According to residents, a rampant problem in these settlements is the subletting that seems to be happening.

“Owners” of shacks on the government land are preying on those with less and charging expensive prices for letting the buildings. People unable to pay the price of these illegal landlords are forcefully evicted and left on the street, which only contributes to the problem of homelessness that the area, in general, is experiencing.

The proximity of these informal settlements to both businesses and homes is considered by many residents and business owners to be a major factor in the rising crime statistics within the area. Even though the perpetrators are not necessarily from these settlements, they are used as areas where the criminals can hide and simply vanish into the crowd.

Authorities and police officers have in the past conducted a walk-through of the settlement to suppress the criminal elements present but when they do, these criminals are nowhere to be found.

*Comment was requested from council regarding what will happen with the informal settelements, but at the time of going to print, no comment was yet received.

Crime

Crime statistics in the area of Alberton North has skyrocketed since the end of 2017. Both businesses and houses in the area have been systematically targeted by robbers.

The nature of these robberies is incredibly violent. Business owners have reported a rising amount of unnecessary violence and vandalism associated with the robberies happening this year.

Chris Daw of the Alberton North Business Forum claims that they have a criminal incident every day of the week.

“Our businesses are targeted between one and six times a day. A day without an incident of robbery, vandalism or violence is a rare occurrence,” said Daw.

Daw also told the RECORD that the Alberton Police Station has been downgraded from a Brigadier status station, as it was in the past.

“The decision at the time was attributed to the low crime statistics. With the downgrade the amount of officers that are staged at the station decreased. This has a side effect of reducing the available amount of manpower the police station has. Police in the area are unable to respond to all the reports and investigations are delayed. This only adds to the feelings of frustration residents feel.

“We are forced to resort to security companies who are called out nearly daily. The security measures that have to be taken are extreme and the cost to businesses is severely impacting their revenue,” said Daw.

“Should this trend of crime continue we will have no choice but to close our doors, leaving our employees jobless and the buildings empty.”

Adding to the many crime problems, the area has been experiencing a growing drug problem. Drugs are known to be sold out of the informal settlements in the area as well as other buildings in Alberton North.

*Comment was requested from police but at the time of printing, comment was not yet received.

More should be done

Residents and business owners alike feel that a concentrated effort needs to be made before conditions in Alberton North reach a terminal point.

They described the area as already dangerous and fear that it can potentially reach the point where it is too late for anything to be done to halt the decay. Residents and business owners agree on the point that more has to be done by both municipal authorities and the police to restore Alberton North to a safe healthy environment.

“We understand the difficulties with dealing with a problem of this magnitude. But more visible work needs to be done to restore the faith of residents,” Daw told the RECORD.

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