East Rand: Once a symbol of honour, the War monument is a mess

The Geduld war monument has been stripped by vandals and it is now a shadow of its former self, Springs Advertiser reports.

The monument, which was built to commemorate soldiers who had died in World War II, sits in a park in Geduld that is filled with litter, construction site rubble, and residents who live close-by say they suspect people are living there at night.

Alderman Andre du Plessis, who is the shadow MMC for Environmental Development, was dismayed by what he saw.

“The area around this memorial statue is being used as an illegal dumping area, plus, vagrants are using it as a toilet, as well as an area to make fire thus destroying its importance as a heritage site.

“It’s sad to see how it has been neglected and it must be restored to its former glory.

“There are little jewels around the city, and the metro must preserve them,” says du Plessis.

Du Plessis suggested it would be better if the metro built a fence around the monument.

In addition to the poor state of the monument, it was clear the parks department have not been around to clean up the park.

Councillor Lorna Beharie says according to residents after the previous article was done by the media on the park in November 2018, the metro came and cleaned up, but have not been back since.