“They treat us badly sometimes. They think we want to scam them while we are the ones keeping the tsotsis away.”

Xolisa Mosasa has been working as one of the official after-hours parking attendants in and around Stellenbosch for years, yet the public still doesn’t truly value the service he and his co-workers perform for the community.

The legitimacy, payment structure and value of the “Red Bibs” attendants have local residents abuzz. Stellenbosch Municipality, however, confirmed these attendants do not work directly for the municipality and therefore receive no salary, pocketing their tips.

“Many people think we are volunteers and don’t see the need to pay us,” explained Lelomelo Ngwe, who works with Mosasa at the Eikestad Mall.

“This is why we are grateful when people give us something because doing this is difficult. When people said they didn’t have cash to pay us we got card machines, but now this is also a problem because they think this is a scam. But the machines are from the bank itself.”

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Safety partnership

The attendants in the red bibs first started their work in 2020-’21. The initiative is a joint partnership between the municipality and the non-profit organisation the Winelands Safety Initiative (WSI).

According to Stuart Grobbelaar, a spokesperson for Stellenbosch Municipality, 37 attendants are currently part of the project which is aimed at improving visitor safety and social upliftment.

“They operate in the CBD and surrounding areas, and rely on voluntary tips from the public. They are not permitted to request or demand tips and have been equipped with Zapper and SnapScan for cashless payments,” Grobbelaar confirmed.

“All attendants are vetted by the police and receive regular training in public relations, surveillance and communication.”

Anti-crime ‘eyes and ears’

The attendants operate within the CBD, at the Eikestad Mall, at Die Boord and Lower Dorp Street.

Part of the attendants’ duties is crime prevention as they are also part of the Business Against Crime SA (BACSA) E2 (Eyes and Ears) project. All official attendants wear branded red bibs, each with a specific number, the Visit Stellenbosch logo as well as logos of the WSI and Stellenbosch Municipality in front. On the back of the bib a telephone number is printed.

There have been reports of criminals wearing Horison Trolleys or ABSA bibs in an effort to imitate the “Red Bibs” before Ngwe and his colleague take over from the municipal parking marshals. The municipality’s marshals end their duties at 17:00.

If in doubt check for the relevant logos, bib numbers and note if the attendants are asking for tips, said André Pelser.

Pelser, the director of the WSI and chairperson of the Stellenbosch Community Policing Forum, reiterated the “Red Bibs” are not allowed to ask for tips.

They are indispensable

Through the WSI and its partners the attendants, who hail predominantly from Kayamandi, also regularly receive training on safety and how to engage with the public.

“Their commitment to help being the eyes and ears of the town area is wonderful,” Pelser said.

The “Red Bibs” also receive data vouchers to ensure they can communicate via the Community Wolf app, a WhatsApp-based crime-reporting tool used to track and map hotspots in real time.

Mosasa said a few weeks ago he and a co-worker had helped stop a “tsotsi” trying to steal a spare wheel from a shopper’s vehicle. “We chased him away and left the wheel under the car so the owner could see the tyre was removed. He was so grateful.

“We also see how these tsotsis target the tourists. They tell the visitors to draw money from the ATM so that they can buy a voucher, but there is no voucher! These guys walk around town after the tourists and tell them all kinds things. We chase them away.”

Ngwe said the “Red Bibs” often work late at night, sometimes finishing at 23:00 and then having to walk back home to Kayamandi. He believes the municipality should add a notice to their signage at parking spaces recognising this official partnership.

“The municipality values the contribution of the WSI attendants, many of whom work late at the night in all weather conditions,” Grobbelaar said.

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