Ward 68 stakeholders join hands to tackle social ills
Issues such as excessive litter and illegal dumping, crime and substance abuse were brought to the forefront at the ward 68 OSS war room meeting.
THE determination to overcome issues that have tarnished ward 68 communities, saw community leaders and stakeholders join hands to tackle social ills head on at their latest Operation Sukuma Sakhe (OSS) war room meeting on Wednesday, 4 March at the Merebank Community Centre.
Issues such as excessive litter and illegal dumping, crime and drug abuse were raised, with presentations from Wentworth police, South Basin Durban Area Based Management (SDB ABM) and Thabitha Community Care Services.
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In addressing public complaints about the dire state of Wentworth and Merebank areas due to litter, Thabile Khumalo from SDB ABM announced plans for a major clean-up campaign to take place on 26 and 27 March (subject to change) in partnership with parks and environment departments. The clean-up is said to target areas of concern such as Hime Street and the old barracks. The Adopt-a-Spot project, which seeks to eradicate and prevent illegal dumping on vacant verges and open spaces by educating residents about an individual responsibility through adopting and nurturing a spot, is also set to kick off for 2020. There were also suggestions to form an environmental forum, which was welcomed by the SDB ABM.
Wentworth Station Commander Colonel Willem Van Zyl shared about the station’s continued efforts to work closely with members of the community through outreach initiatives to not only fight crime but also address the issues that result in criminal activities.
Colonel Small also noted community members’ concern of the prevalent issue of drug abuse in the area, particularly with the introduction of new drug, Wiz, which has infiltrated high schools in Merebank and almost claimed the life of a learner, recently. “Saturday, 14 March we want to take the first step in going out to the community to tackle this issue of drugs. We planning to do a clean-up a drug awareness and educational campaign with relevant stakeholders and organisations. Through social crime prevention we want to go beyond the operational way to deal with this crime, but to rather take on a holistic approach, get to the root cause of this crime and combat it. The interest here is the community,” said Small.
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Renette Roskruge, director of Thabitha Community Care Services shared her plans to host a community outreach programme on 21 March, where drug addicts who have overcome addiction will work with struggling addicts as their way of giving back to the community.
The floor was also opened to community members in attendance to share their views, concerns and willingness to contribute to restoring ward 68 back to its former glory. Local residents interested in joining the Ward 68 OSS war room are invited to attend meetings held on the first Wednesday of every month. The ward caters to Wentworth and Merebank residents, meetings are alternated monthly between the Austerville Community Centre and the Merebank Library/Community Centre. For more information, call secretary Neil Axford on 076-878-7463 or convener Sharin Rajman on 083-786-6972.
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