Around 6.55pm on 14 February, I was on my way to the shop and passed the taxi rank in Tsutsumani Village, where there is First Park and a car wash.
I then noticed a huge crowd, I’m sure there must have been over 500 or more people, a youth group of ages 9 to 16 years old. There was loud music, I didn’t notice then that it was load shedding as I was on my way to buy electricity.
The music was coming from taxis, as you can see on the photos provided. Unfortunately when I decided to take photos, I only managed to take two because my phone was flat. As I walked closer to the music and the crowd, I smelt brandy from these little boys. I’m sure 12-year-olds had wine in their plastic glasses and were drinking, and as I walked more and more in the centre of the crowd, children were holding and drinking all sorts of ciders, from Hunters gold, Guarana, Reds, Red square and Flying fish.
Anger was building inside me. Anger that why, who and which monster allows children to do such things? What sort of parents allow their children to do this and don’t even know their child’s whereabouts?
All of the children, about 500, were drinking among taxi drivers that played loud music. The same taxi drivers who were the ones transporting these children from all over Alex, and God knows from which other township, to school.
I quickly went back to my friend’s house and questioned whether she was aware of this. She too was angry and showed concern and I literally asked for her cellphone since mine was flat to phone the police and her response was, “Don t bother, this happened in October last year as well.”
A friend’s seven-year-old son was drinking a Guarana at the October social. The Alexandra Police Station doesn’t give a damn, they didn’t in October and they certainly won’t even today.
I responded by saying the police should surround every entry point of that park and taxi rank and test every child for alcohol and arrest them, just like drinking and driving, but this time underage drinking.
These kids, none of them have a future, as they have started with underage drinking. Most were smoking weed and cigarettes. You can just imagine a 10-year-old smoking weed and the next thing could be nyaope, all in the name of fun and being cool.
What is the Alexandra Taxi Association saying about this? Secondly, the tavern and bottle store owners, what do they say? They should not dare act all innocent and lie that they don’t sell to underage children.
– Editor this letter was cut as it was too long.
