EMPD removes homeless during CBD by-law operation
“At some places, the squatters had turned pavements and backyards of private businesses into recycling areas where they store plastic and other collected materials.”
The City of Ekurhuleni has been inundated with complaints about homeless people squatting in shop doorways, on pavements and in some instances within the premises of businesses in the Central Business Districts (CBDs) of Brakpan and Springs.
Littering and the absence of ablution facilities has the potential of causing untold health issues.
According to EMPD spokesperson Chief Supt Wilfred Kgasago, the EMPD was compelled to take action and a special by-law operation was conducted in Brakpan and Springs over the weekend.
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“On Saturday and Sunday from 7am to midday, the metro police, together with traffic wardens, removed numerous squatters and confiscated some of their belongings which were causing an unbearable stench, as well as obstructing pavements and business entrances,” he said.
“At some places, the squatters had turned pavements and backyards of private businesses into recycling areas where they store plastic and other collected materials.”
Kgasago added that the EMPD will periodically pounce on the squatters to ensure that the CBDs are kept clean and that normal movement of pedestrians and the operation of businesses are not hampered.
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