Municipal help to quell ‘verge parties’
In an effort to reduce crime in Mtubatuba, residents have formed a Whatsapp neighbourhood watch group.
DESPITE persistent complaints to law enforcement authorities, Mtubatuba residents are still battling against the prevalence of unruly verge parties, resulting in safety concerns and a litter problem.
In a letter to the Zululand Observer, one resident recently questioned the municipality’s ability to enforce duties such as its control of ‘noise pollution’, ‘control of public nuisances’, ‘cleaning’ and ‘street lights’ as promoted on its website.
‘When is the municipality going to start doing something about the people parking across from our home and having drunken parties, being a public nuisance and creating noise pollution at all hours of the day?’ the resident asked.
It has become common practice for open tracts of land, especially residential verges, in Mtubatuba to be congregated on by loiterers looking for a party.
Loud music, drunken and lewd behaviour ensues, leaving residents fearing for their safety while, oftentimes, police officers don’t attend even when reports are made.
‘When are you going to take action and start doing something about this?’ the resident asked the municipality.
The municipal Communications Officer acknowledged receipt of the letter and promised to take the complaint further.
Another resident reported a daytime party to Mtubatuba SAPS, saying ‘This has become too much to cope with. Please assist soon as my elderly mom, who can hardly walk, is scared and home alone in tears’.
While Mtubatuba appears to have become a haven for this kind of behaviour, the knock-on effects, such as the build up of litter, are exacerbated by the limiting of basic services, including rubbish collection, which has been cut from twice to once weekly.
In an effort to reduce crime in Mtubatuba, residents have formed a Whatsapp neighbourhood watch group where they keep each other informed of such behaviour.
