Residents disgruntled by lack of grass cutting in the west
Residents in the west of Pretoria are concerned for their safety. They claim muggers and would-be rapists are using the tall grass in open fields to hide.
Muggers and would-be rapists are using the tall grass in open fields to hide in, residents in the west of Pretoria are complaining.
And it’s all the municipality’s fault for not maintaining these public spaces, they say.
“It has now been more than six months since the grass had been cut,” said Danville resident Gift Khazamula Ndlovu.
Ndlovu was mugged on his way to a store by a man who was hiding in the bushes.
“I was on my way to a grocery store and I took a shortcut through a veld,” he said.
“A man, whom I believe is not from the Danville area, jumped out of the bushes and robbed me of my school registration money and cell phone.
“It was over within mere seconds. I could not even describe the person who robbed me.”
READ MORE: Some crimes on the rise in the west – police
Ndlovu said there was little police presence in the area and felt more could be done to patrol the area.
“We see police handing out pamphlets on safety awareness tips, but they fail us.
“The government has failed us too because they promise us protection, but we remain unsafe in our own areas.
“In future, they should not force the youth to vote if they will not provide safety for us.”
A 15-year-old learner, who asked to remain anonymous, shared his traumatic experience in the same area.
He told Rekord he was nearly raped by an old man.
“I was on my way to school at around 06:00 in the morning. As I was going to through a bushy area, a man pulled me from behind into the bushes. He held me down on the ground and started taking off his pants.”
“I fought as hard as I could, trying to use my hands because there was no object nearby with which to defend myself.
“I was screaming for help, but no one could hear me.
READ MORE: Police teach learners to be aware of crime
“Luckily I managed to escape and ran to the nearby school for help.”
The learner said he did not bother reporting the incident to police as he believed they would not have taken it seriously.
“My mother and school psychologists advised me to no longer use that route to school.
“It was the most traumatic experience of my whole life.
“The idea that I was almost raped left me emotionally depressed and I struggled to focus on my schoolwork.”
Resident Gugu Mashilo told Rekord there was a break-in at her home about two months ago.
“I suspect the criminals used one of these unmaintained fields to hide in.”
Another school learner, Vukosi Maluleke, said he also no longer used any fields to go to school.
He now instead used a longer route.
READ MORE: Crimes to be aware of in the Moot
“Every day we see new people passing by and we suspect they could be looking for people to rob.
“In the winter it would be worse because then it would be dark and misty in the mornings and you can barely see anything.
Maluleke said people now illegally dump their rubbish in the unmaintained fields and homeless people also sleep there.
Pretoria west police spokesperson Constable Sibongile Vuma warned residents against using open fields as shortcuts and instead use proper paths to reach their destination.
“Sector vehicles are deployed daily to monitor areas in Danville to prevent such crimes from happening.”
Tshwane metro spokesperson Lindela Mashigo, however, said maintenance in the area had in fact been done in the beginning of February.
“Teams spent three days servicing the area,” he said.
Mashigo said residents should note that the municipality is not responsible for all the open spaces and natural sites in the area.
“Some fall under Eskom, who has servitude in the area,” he said.
“Also, as much as we are keen on addressing the community’s demands for both security and aesthetics, we try to balance it by being sensitive to the prevalent biodiversity in the area.”
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