‘Jobseekers problem needs serious solution’

INCIDENTS linked to the ‘jobseekers’ who sit along Kingsway in Warner Beach are negatively affecting both economic and tourism potential in the area.

This is according to owner of Blue Sky Mining Backpackers and Lodge, Barrett Neilson and Glynis Rathbone of ‘My Sapphire CommUnity’, who are both passionate about growth in Warner Beach.
Glynis recently spoke to a ‘jobseeker’ on the main road, who claimed to be looking for a job, but had no identity document or references. “He claimed he had a family to support and was usually picked up about once a month by a potential employer.”

Some of them are a ‘permanent fixture’ on the road side and often harass Barrett’s staff and international visitors who stay at his lodge.
He related a number of incidents, including one of the ‘jobseekers’ being stabbed. “In one incident my staff member got off a taxi and a prostitute confronted her, thinking she was moving in on her turf. She attempted to grab her bag and during a scuffle, a ‘jobseeker’ handed the prostitute a knife to stab my employee. Fortunately, she got away with only bruises and scratches.”

The ‘jobseekers’ use the surrounding bushes as a toilet in open view of the public. Barrett, accompanied by the police also found sleeping quarters in the bushes, along with a bag of a car radios, suspected to be stolen. A vacant piece of busy land in Kingsway is also used to allegedly stash stolen goods.
“With these men sitting on the side of the road, the safety of not only locals, but my international visitors are being comprised. “Three visitors using a local ATM had thousands of rands of cash withdrawn from their accounts after they used a local ATM.”

Both Glynis and Barrett stress that authorities need to step forward. “There has to be a proper, regulated place for the genuine jobseekers,” said Glynis.
Furthermore the various departments such as health, Home Affairs and the police need to liaise with each other to find a solution to the problem. “The community needs to put pressure on the authorities to do their jobs,” said Glynis.

“The municipality spent more than R2-m on the upgrade in Warner Beach as they recognised the eco-tourism potential. They are not supporting the economic potential by cleaning it up.”
In spite of the negatives, the community is taking back the streets. Two full moon beach walks from Baggies to Winkle were well-supported by the community.
‘My Sapphire CommUnity’ next community meeting will be on Thursday, 19 February at 5pm for 5.30pm at a location to be agreed on. Keep an eye on the Facebook page for details.