The City of Johannesburg initiative, A Re Sebetseng, has carried over two months into the new year and Linden’s councillor is calling on more residents to get involved.
Since the start of the initiative, Ward 99 councillor Nicole van Dyk said the turnout in Linden has not been as good as expected.
She said it is particularly strange considering it is held at a site many residents bring up as problematic due to the constant mess at the site.
“We’ve requested residents to join us but we haven’t received a positive response. A Re Sebetseng only happens on the third Saturday of every month,” van Dyk explained.
When the Northcliff Melville Times visited the Linden A Re Sebetseng on 17 February, only one a handful of residents attended along with a few DA members and a City of Johannesburg official.
Some of the displaced men living on the Emma Park heritage site premises did their share of cleaning, even one who no longer lives on the premises but came back because of his relationship with Van Dyk and wanting to keep the area clean.
Megan von Maltitz, a young Linden resident and activist who regularly participates in the A Re Sebetseng initiatives, said it is important for the community to keep the environment clean and get involved to uplift their suburb, especially the youth, who should now more than ever get involved with preserving the area for their own futures.
Gustav de Villiers, the DA youth chairperson, explained that for the first few A Re Sebetseng clean-ups, it was just himself, Von Maltitz and Van Dyk.
“I’ve been staying here since I was in primary school. Everyone is sitting cosy in suburbia but, you know, someone has to go out there and do it [preserve the area].”
For more information about Linden’s A Re Sebetseng and to join in, contact Ward 99 councillor Nicole van Dyk on 071 382 1992.
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