Kibler Park community takes stand against local informal settlement
There is growing tension in the community as residents express concern over safety and security issues linked to the informal settlement.
Sixteen fed-up community members from Kibler Park and Mayfield Park walked from Kibler Park SPAR to a makeshift informal settlement behind the Pikitup dumping site on October 29.
They went there with no police or any protection and they were unarmed. Their message, however, was clear: to demolish the shacks, which they believe are havens for thieves who have terrorised them.
Upon arrival, they found eight of these structures. One housed two coloured women and two toddlers, the other housed three men and a woman, and some were empty.
One of the men who lived there, Tshepiso Moloi who hails from KwaZulu-Natal, said God sent him to live there. He calls the place Israel.
@southern.courier Fearless Kibler Park and Mayfield Park communities tackle crime head-on Sixteen community members went from Kibler Park SPAR to a makeshift informal settlement behind the Pikitup dumping site. They went there with one mission, to demolish the informal structures because they believed they were a haven for thieves who have been terrorising them.
The woman said they were unaware of the criminal activities the community was talking about. “I don’t know if anyone or any thieves are coming here. I have nothing and nowhere else to go,” she said.
Although none of the shacks were demolished, they were warned harshly that they needed to vacate the place immediately.
More support
Later on the day, Ward 125 Clr Matsobane Sekhu, CPF Sector 3, Fox Tactical Unit and Night Hawks Tactical came to support the community.
It was then discovered that there were zama zamas nearby. Five zama zamas fled the scene toward the Mall of the South, leaving behind a water pump generator, two shovels and two pickaxes.
Sekhu said, “We are at Parklane, the agricultural area with an informal settlement. We’ve been attending them, even offering them shelter through social development. However, they refused.
“My concern is that there are children here and in this settlement, you cannot raise children. That is why we are trying to get the provincial side to get court orders or whatever procedure they follow so that they can take these children into their custody.
“In the process of all this, we also have zama zamas in the area. With the security companies present we went into the area to scout. The illegal miners ran away. However, we were able to confiscate some of their equipment and we also destroyed one of the plants there. It is one of those disruptions because we know they will come back but the more we disrupt their operation the better because we don’t want them to get comfortable in the area.”
The community has the same sentiment that the informal settlement will be a haven for cable thieves, illegal foreigners and illegal miners. They said incidents of house robberies and cable theft are high in the area.
