Residents in the west of Pretoria still feared for their safety after squatters moved in across the road.
This comes after vagrants started living across the street on a strip of land in Malie Street, said resident Madelein Coetzee.
“It is getting worse,” she said.
She said the vagrants started squatting illegally across the road about 10 months ago.
“About 10 are now living across the road,” she said.
“In the past we never had a problem. There were people there on occasion, but they never stayed.
“In the beginning it was only a Thursday morning ritual when the area’s dustbins was taken out.”
She said Transnet had the area mowed about a month ago.
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Another resident, Gerda Visagie said that the matter was “getting out of hand”.
She said the problem was not only a health concern but also threatened the safety of residents.
“The problem is it is young school girls and boys walking to school and home past this ‘illegal settlement’,” she said.
Coetzee said they also had an increase in break-ins since the squatters started living there.
“They broke into my home three times in one day back in February,” she said.
“My daughter suffers from anxiety because we have been smashed and grabbed twice. Her home was like a safe haven, but now that has changed.”
She said residents also suspected that the vagrants were trading drugs on the field.
“Sometimes we see very suspicious vehicles parked across the road,” she said.
Visagie said the area was a concern to her and her family.
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“Before they moved in, we actually felt safe,” she said.
“Now they are sleeping, bathing and using the strip as a public toilet.”
“Sometimes we cannot open our windows or doors as a result of the smell,” she said.
“It is terrible. We do not know what to do anymore.”
Ward councillor Elma Nel said she was aware of the squatters but has not received any new complaints.
“If any shacks are erected, the Tshwane metro police should be notified immediately.”
The Tshwane metro could not comment at the time of going to press.
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