On Friday 29 August chaos and anarchy once again erupted in Canary Street and surrounding areas during a function at West Ridge high.
Residents in the immediate vicinity feared for their lives and property as pupils and persons not directly affiliated to the school engaged in fighting, drug taking, drinking, racing their cars and intimidating the public.
The function allegedly was supposed to be from 4pm until 7pm but the events surrounding it, named the ‘Battle of Canary Road’ by residents, only calmed down after 9pm. Although residents were calling the police since 6pm, only one police vehicle arrived and quickly disappeared again. By 8pm residents were calling Roodepoort SAPS frantically, demanding to speak to the station commander who dispatched ‘nine or ten vehicles which left within five minutes’.
Jonkershoek (the complex right across the street from the school) resident Jean-Pierre Ardinois gives an account of the evening.
“It was like something out of a movie. The children were swearing at us. Girls of no more than 14 years old were smoking dagga openly and arrogantly gave us their names,” says Ardinois.
“The police vehicle that arrived did nothing and the same happened later. The kids were drag racing up and down the one-way and one crashed into a parked vehicle but just sped off. One of the vehicles that left from the school also was involved in an accident on Ontdekkers Road and there was a smashed-up taxi on Sonop Street.
“The street was littered with alcohol bottles and not the cheap stuff either. I saw bottles of Johnnie Walker Black Label and one of the children hurled an empty Jack Daniels bottle at me,” says Ardinois.
“Taxis were bussing in children and individuals whom I doubt is in school anymore. Various fights broke out during the evening and residents were prevented from entering their properties. Eventually the whole area was gridlocked and the children were patrolling the streets deciding who is allowed in.
“Where were the police and Metro Police? Why did they not stop this chaos that only could be called criminal?” asks Ardinois.
Another resident, Nico Louw, says no teachers were supervising the situation and it was obvious that the few security guards on duty could not control the pupils.
“These children have no respect for the property of others. Our complex as well as the streets around us are continuously littered with empty bottles (often of an alcoholic nature), sweets wrappers and empty plastic bags. Gambling on the pavements before and after school has been a favourite pastime for years and despite having reported it numerous times to different authorities, nothing has been done about it,” says Louw.
“It is common knowledge that there is a very active drug dealer in the vicinity servicing children with wads of money in their pockets; yet none of the authorities seem interested in apprehending this person. The kids loiter in the streets in front of our complex before and after school They often play with our intercom system and hurl abuse at whoever dares to answer it. Trying to get out of our complex to go to work in the mornings is a mission because parents (and others dropping of kids at school) simply park in front of our gates and refuse to move until they are ready to go. Attempts to speak to them either fall on deaf ears or they swear at you,” says Louw.
The caretaker of another block of flats bordering the school complained that although the streets were cleaned up the next day, a large number of alcohol bottles as well as numerous empty drug zip-lock bags were left on their property.
After another resident had published her account of the evening’s events on a daily newspaper’s blog page someone, assumed to be a pupil of the school, left the following comment :”So what we DRUNK? So what we smoke WEED? We just having FUN we don’t care who SEES!!! With all due respect, please know your place. Act as an adult and stopping making your life revolve around West Ridge”. (Comment not edited — Ed.)
The school has asked the record to give them time to comment but a week later nothing has been received from them. They were contacted again on 8 September and they indicated that they would still comment.
