No answers forthcoming about vacant land

Residents living along Kirkby Road have, once again, called for intervention by government to address the overgrown vacant land.

The land, which belongs to the Gauteng Department of Education (GDE), has been left unkempt for over two years.

According to residents, vagrants have since moved onto the land and those living in complexes overlooking the land say they fear their safety might be compromised.

“We see the men making fires and hear them talking during the night. I would not be surprised if they watch the movements in our homes from there. The sad thing about it is that no one takes our complaints seriously because it does not directly affect them,” said Mr Nathan Shivambu.

The ward 20 councillor, Clr Jill Humpreys, said she had been trying for a long time to get the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Minicipality (EMM) to clean up the land.

“If only the owners of the land would allow garden clubs to use the land in the meantime to plant and beautify the space. It is such an eyesore and I understand why residents are upset,” said Clr Humphreys.

Following the article published on February 24, the SAPS has visited the land on several occasions.

“This gives us hope that their visibility will scare the vagrants away,” said another resident.

Despite sending a request for comment to the GDE, no comment was received at the time of going to print.