As the end of week two of the lockdown approaches, ward 97 councillor, Andre Beetge has the following challenges and requests to the Toti community.
Displaced people
A regional shelter has been set up to facilitate displaced people in Isipingo, where they are screened, supplied with mattresses, blankets, soap, toiletries, toilets, showers and adequate food. “Conditions are not in line with a three star hotel, but we facilitated a oversight visit with an independent social worker early Tuesday morning, 7 April in an effort to make certain recommendations to council on how their stay can be made more comfortable.
“Our main challenge, however, is keeping guests inside the facility. Their dependence on various substances, that are obviously not being supplied within the establishment, has them jumping the fence on a daily basis. This has them filtering back to suburban intersections or knocking on residential doors where they draw on the sympathy of the community with tales of hunger, not having received a mattress nor blanket or food at the shelter, all of which are simply not true.
A decision has now been made not to issue the same person with a mattress and blanket every time that they are recollected off the streets, being that they disappear with these articles that are then sold to sustain their dependency. It is vitally important that displaced people remain within the constraints of the facility both in the interest of their health and others, so as to prevent contamination.”
READ ALSO: Isipingo clinic given help during coronavirus fight
Crime
Statistics confirmed on Wednesday morning, 8 April indicate that although crime is still being reported, it is down 45% on average in comparison to both the previous month and the same period in 2019. House breakings, although down, are still incurring while opportunists have been capatalising on the fact that businesses are standing closed without daily attendance. Residents are cautioned not to become complacent, but to remain vigilant as criminals continue with their activities, despite there being a constant presence at homes.
Illegal dumping and health risks
“Despite repeated requests on various platforms and our plea for sanity to prevail, certain residents remain selfish in their approach by illegally dumping refuse in front of closed garden refuse sites in both Seadoone and Nyati roads or by merely discarding along the roadside or along a less used side street.
“One just cannot comprehend how individuals can remain so self-centered that they would choose to create additional health risks or additional work for officials that, in the long run, compromises the municipality’s ability to continue domestic refuse collection in line with weekly schedules.
“We warn again that should people be found transporting refuse, it will be considered travelling for non-essential purposes that will result in being charged to court in terms of the Disaster Management Act.”
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Payment of municipal accounts
“We make an urgent appeal to residents to continue paying their municipal accounts. We have to accept that it is currently impossible for meter readers to perform their normal duties, likewise postal services to distribute accounts if and should they even be generated.
As such residents are advised to make payments in line with their normal usage or accommodating a slight increase against their normal usage, being that all are home 24/7, as the city cannot continue to deliver services without payments being made against usage. “Should residents, as appears the popular trend, continue to withhold payment to the municipality, the city will inevitably not remain a sustainable entity, so please pay.”
Distribution of fake, incorrect or unsubstantiated information
Security forces and related structures already have their hands full to enforce the regulations and long hours are being worked to ensure community safety and curb panic. “We caution everyone to refrain from sharing unsubstantiated information that often only seeks to create panic, but to rather concentrate on information from known and reliable sources or to follow the special media channels where questions are often answered and programmes repeated.
“Security forced cannot be deployed to every single street 24-hours a day or be expected to attend every miniscule complaint or to simply settle a dispute between two agitated and frustrated neighbours. Let’s remain sensible and realistic, as just because people don’t see a police officer on every street corner, doesn’t mean they not out there working somewhere. Keep safe, make sure you don’t compromise your own or your family’s safety and only go out when it’s absolutely essential,” said Beetge.
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