Johannesburg Metro Police Department dismantles illegal roadside farm in Winnie Mandela Drive operation
Ward 94 councillor David Foley said residents' complaints led to an operation that removed a makeshift farm and structures from a busy stretch of Winnie Mandela Drive.
An operation to remove an illegal occupation on a piece of land near Tiger Wheel & Tyre on Winnie Mandela Drive has paved the way for planned security upgrades aimed at preventing the area from being reoccupied.
Ward 94 councillor David Foley said the operation targeted, what he described as, a semi-informal settlement that had begun taking shape on the site, prompting concerns from residents. According to Foley, the operation had initially been scheduled for the previous week, but had to be postponed due to logistical challenges before taking place on Wednesday.
“I had received numerous complaints about the area, and we didn’t want another informal settlement developing there.”
Foley, who was unable to attend the operation because he was in a council meeting, said one individual had been cultivating crops, including mealies, on the occupied land. He thanked the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) for leading the operation and acknowledged the assistance of the Fourways Improvement District (FID), which helped remove debris, scrap metal, and other materials from the site.
Foley said clearing the land would allow the Fourways Crossing precinct to extend its perimeter fencing from the boundary of Tiger Wheel & Tyre along Winnie Mandela Drive to the nearby pedestrian walkway, and towards the adjacent filling station.
He believes the fencing will help secure the area, protect surrounding infrastructure, and create a more uniform streetscape, similar to the fencing already installed opposite Fourways Mall. “Our aim is to take our streets back, corner by corner.”
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The councillor said the intervention forms part of ongoing efforts to respond to residents’ concerns and prevent the establishment of illegal occupations in the area.
Metro police spokesperson Xolani Fihla said the operation was initiated to address illegal structures, vagrancy, and by-law non-compliance along Winnie Mandela Drive.
“Winnie Mandela Drive is a provincial road where the erection of unauthorised structures and non-authorised activities are strictly prohibited by relevant municipal by-laws. The enforcement operation was conducted solely by JMPD.”
He said, during the course of the operation JMPD officers carried out, one illegal structure (shack) was demolished, 45 citations were issued to illegal taxis for unlawful parking in the area, and goods belonging to illegal hawkers operating at Fourways Boulevard were impounded.
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