The Swartklip cemetery, electricity protests and the new storage facility in the Town Centre are some of the topics Sub-council 12 covered in its monthly meeting last week.
Sub-council chair, Solomon Philander, addressed the protests which caused traffic disruptions in Swartklip Road. Philander said that the residents in the informal settlement assaulted a security guard and vandalised a sewer pump after their illegal electricity connections were disconnected from the pump.
He said this followed “months of engagement” with the public, sub-council, residents and the informal settlers to bring the message across that the illegal connections to the pump caused sewage overflows, but the engagements fell on deaf ears.
“The decision was taken to disconnect them completely. A security guard was assaulted and the structure was vandalised to the ground,” Philander said. “We cannot allow that.”
He added that the settlement falls under Eskom’s service area.
“Eskom needs to answer them on their calls for electrification,” Philander said.
Zita Petersen, who runs a creche, aftercare and feeding scheme for Skye’s Wooden Spoon in Vosho, where the protests took place, said the area is quiet “for now”.
Petersen said the non-profit’s creche had to close for two weeks due to the protests which was very disruptive.
“For the kids that weren’t able to stay home, their parents brought them to our home to be taken care of,” Petersen said.
Petersen said she sympathises with the community’s need for electricity but “it’s an interruption in our day because volunteers are not able to come to work leaving us short staffed.
“We could not risk putting their lives in danger as the burning of tires was right down that stretch, bullets were fired and teargas thrown. It affects the innocent as well.”
Swartklip cemetery
Philander also addressed the rumours around the Swartklip sports complex further down the road, that will be demolished.
“It’s a very difficult thing that we bring to you, the demolition of the Swartklip sports complex,” Philander said.
‘The cemetery is not replacing the facility’
Solomon Philander, Sub-council 12 chair
He said rumours in the community, which forms part of his ward, claimed that the much-needed sports facility would be replaced with a cemetery.
“The cemetery is not replacing the facility,” Philander clarified. “That is incorrect information that was sent out to the public. It is a separate thing. There is enough space to have the cemetery, the building and the sports field on the ground.”
Philander said that due to health and safety issues the vacant and derelict sports centre building would be demolished.
“The building was not used for a number of years. It was standing there vacant and nobody complained about it,” Philander said.
“Sub-council supported the demolition on condition that the community get a replacement facility for sports and recreation.”
Philander added that the public participation process would begin soon.
“The concept will be going back to the community to say that you requested X, Y and Z but these are the possibilities for that space.”
Vendor storage for Town Centre
Another matter that Philander raised was the storage facility that has been built for traders in the Town Centre.
“For many, many years there was a promise made to the informal traders in Town Centre that they would be given storage space and finally that building is complete,” he said.
Philander said that with the storage will come a more strict adherence to the trading by-law.
“You will see that we are removing structures and things in Town Centre, because the by-law says that a permitted trader will come at sunrise and set up, and at sunset they will leave the place as found, but what is actually happening is people put pallets there, they put kissies there, they put structures there and it is just a lawless thing. So now with the storage space up and running, these things will not be allowed. A permitted trader will need to ensure that they stick to the by-law. We ask the support of every trader to follow what the permit says. We cannot allow lawlessness in the community.”
