Desperate Resident writes:
We, the residents of Glen Marais Ext One, have reached the end of our patience with the problems we have been forced to endure having a squatter camp in the middle of our suburb.
Enough has been written of the extreme health risks and damage to businesses, having squatters situated directly behind a shopping centre housing restaurants and several food outlets.
Over the Christmas period, almost every house in our street was the target of a break-in. Each successive night there were reports on the WhatsApp group of alarms being triggered, electric fences being tampered with, dogs barking and anxious residents being woken and harassed by would-be thieves.
Almost everyone in our street has had his wheelie bin stolen in broad daylight. We have camera footage of clearly marked bins being wheeled up the street towards the squatter camp.
Residents now delay going about their business on the day bins are to be emptied, as they have to watch that they are not stolen and have to take bins inside the moment they are emptied.
To add to the enormous frustration, we can never rely on the trucks arriving on the scheduled day, let alone a scheduled time.
Furthermore, the procedure required to replace a stolen wheelie bin can take up to a full work day. Many households have had several bins stolen.
We hear now that the squatters will not be going until April, some say October. Yet another delay.
How many postponements will we have to endure under these dreadful conditions before peace returns to our suburb?
We too have rights which are being violated. With the almost constant interruption of water and light services and rampant crime (another house in our street was cleaned out yesterday), life has become unbearable for people who are paying their rates and taxes and attempting to keep their suburb clean and getting little in return.
It is not that we are unsympathetic to the plight of the squatters, whom we understand wish to be closer to work, but all parties are suffering here. The conditions in the camp are detrimental to those living there too.
Rubbish is strewn along the sidewalks outside the shopping centre, which adds to the rat infestation and spread of disease.
When the Great North Road squatter camp burned down, there was an overwhelming outpouring of goodwill and assistance from the community. The church halls were stacked with bedding, food and toys for the victims, so please don’t tell us we do not heed the plight of the needy.
Arrangements have been in progress for their transition to a more suitable area for many months now, so why is there another delay?
When a councillor is approached for an answer, we are fobbed off with the same old stock phrase: “It’s in the hands of the court.” This will get us nowhere.
We can no longer go on living under these ghastly conditions where our lives are disrupted on a daily basis. Action has to be taken and the problem has to be resolved for the good of all parties.
