Activities in ‘Mahonie Park’ leave residents feeling unsafe
The park on corner Mahonie Crescent and Main Road in Eldorado Park, extension 2 has been nothing close to a play area for the children in the community.
The park on corner Mahonie Crescent and Main Road in Eldorado Park, extension 2 has been nothing close to a play area for the children in the community. A resident living near the park shared the horrors that they have to deal with as residents living near the park.
On Tuesday, June 29, at about 2.15 am the residents heard four gunshots going off in the park, one bullet hit the wall near the window of their house, ricochet off the washing line, and landed on the ground.
The local explained that these gunshots have become a norm in the park along with people getting robbed, cars parked and playing loud music late at night, open fires, drug dealing, substance abuse, and people having sex at night in the park.
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“The police do come into the park but after a few minutes of talking to the guys, they leave again. We have been complaining for years about these issues but nothing happened. We have been speaking to ward councillor Juwairiya Smith and the Patriotic Alliance (PA) said they are going to assist us. Something needs to be done about this,” said the resident.
With used condoms found in the park, and the alleged drug activities being high, the resident added that there are little to no children playing in the park because it is not safe for them.
“We lost faith in the police, we called them when the guys had a fire and were making a noise in the park when we called the police station, they said that there has been a complaint and that the van is coming out. We were waiting for over thirty minutes for them to come but they did not pitch. Police visibility is very poor. We hear people screaming in the park at night and it is too dangerous for us to get out of bed to go see if the person is okay. Once we called the police because the guys were smoking their drugs, the officer that I spoke to said that by the time they come, the guys would already be done smoking and they will be gone,” the local explained.
As things seem to be getting worse in the park, the residents are just hoping that they can get the assistance that they need for them to live in a safe and healthy environment.
Constable Roxanne Gibb from Eldorado Park SAPS said that she cannot comment on the drug selling, robberies, or sex in the park because nothing has been reported. Gibb said that the resident needs to go to the police station to give a statement and so that they can see why the resident wasn’t assisted when they called the station. “If residents cannot come through to the
Eldorado Park police station, they can call 086 00 10111 our crimestop hotline,” added Gibb.
Ward Cllr Juwairiya Smith is yet to comment on the issues.
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