Crippling crime, abhorrent living conditions and dilapidated infrastructure have prompted City of Joburg officials to take a much stronger stand on the rejuvenation and revitalisation of the inner city.
Operation Buyisa iJozi, or Bring back Jozi, is the measure that has been resorted to in an attempt to provide redress to a myriad of social issues.
According to Peter van Vuuren, acting assistant director for relationship management for Region F, the operation is aimed at taking back the city by alleviating urban decay and stopping criminality, among a host of key focus areas. He said, “With the aim of getting rid of the crime and grime in the city, different local government departments have come together and are working towards realising the dream of a cleaner Jozi.”
The South African Police Service, Metro police and various other City of Joburg entities, have been commissioned to carry out the mandate, and have collectively, to date, made a number of inroads since the relaunch of the operation four months ago.
Van Vuuren added, “The City established 18 priority areas or hotspots that are riddled with [socio-economic] challenges – Joubert Park, Mayfair, Hillbrow, Yeoville, Bellevue, Jeppestown and St Mary’s Cathedral, among them.
“Each precinct has its unique set of challenges, problems and characteristics and so the idea is to tackle one precinct at a time and alleviate the most critical challenges [identified] therein.”
Talking further about the objectives of the joint law enforcement operation, Van Vuuren said that improving compliance with city bylaws and reducing incidents of violent and economic crimes, coupled with reducing the fear of crime, were essential to the core of the operation.
“The public needs to be educated and perpetrators need to be made aware of their wrongdoing in order for them to fix it before law enforcement extends it long arm.
“After taking back a particular precinct, we try to sustain the course of action by maintaining a presence in the community.”
Van Vuuren also urged communities to take part in the effort to bring Jozi back by becoming involved personally. “If people have problems that they identify in their communities, they should report them; they [ought to] take pride and be responsible. If the inner city can be turned around, everything else will fall into place.”
Crime prevention statistics for the month of February:
- 12 arrests
- 529 vehicle stops
- 609 vehicle searches
- 220 civilian searches
- 225 perishable goods confiscations
- 144 non-perishable goods confiscations.
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Take part in Operation Buyisa iJozi and report any community-related concerns on the City of Joburg hotline 086 056 2874.
