Councillor helps to feed the needy

JOHANNESBURG SOUTH – Residents of the Booysens informal settlement took advice from the DA’s PR councillor for ward 124, Clr Tyrell Meyers, and started planting vegetables to help to feed themselves and their families.

The informal settlement’s committee chairperson, Vusi Mvubu, and Meyers decided to teach members of the community gardening skills, to avoid creating a circle of handouts.

“For now we need the assistance of individuals and companies, who can donate old and used tyres,” Mvubu said.

”That way residents who have not started gardening yet can join in, as they are starting to see that those who have started their gardens, are cutting their tomatoes and spinach every other week.”

According to Meyers and Mvubu, once residents have started growing the vegetables inside tyres, near their shacks, a bigger garden will be started, which will get the rest of the community involved.

The purpose of such a community garden is to stop those who do not have their own gardens from stealing other people’s produce, as they do not understand the importance of gardening.

This community garden will, however, be limited, as the property belongs to Transnet.

According to Meyers, the informal settlement is a very impoverished area and most of the residents are unemployed and depend on recycling waste and doing odd jobs to survive.

The councillor also found that the area is prone to fires and numerous residents have lost their important identification documents as a result of the blazes.

“I have been visiting this community for a long time now; you can see the people already know me,” he said.

”But I am not going to end it here. I have also received 50 solar lights from sponsors, but I cannot distribute them yet, because the numbers of shacks has multiplied significantly. Giving out the lights will cause fights,” Meyers said. People, organisations and companies wishing to help can contact Mvubu on 076 6903 490.