Despite failing the community concerning ongoing crime in the area, the so called Laudium CPF Chairperson, Shaheen Wahab (Mangu) still believes in his ‘peanut’ mind, that he is doing a sterling job, in this position.
As the saying goes, numbers do not lie. The recent so called public meetings held jointly by both Cllr Patel and Shaheen (more fondly known as Changu and Mangu), saw the majority of residents showing no confidence in the pair, boycotting these meetings, with even many of the CPF members and Ward Committee members also not attending. As calls continue to criminally charge Mangu for defeating the ends of justice, concerning the murder of the late Mubeen Bhana, Mangu continues to fail the community, which lives in fear, with regards to crime in the area. This follows yet another crime reported to the Laudium Sun, that took place in Laudium Ext 3, last Thursday night (July 3), shortly before midnight. It is believed that two Black African males jumped over the back wall of a house on Kathmandu Street, near the Itireleng informal settlement, stealing a number of items from the yard, including two swimming pool chairs, floodlights, solar lights, and two Buddha statues.
Homeowner, Goolabie Chikoorie, of Kathmandu Street, lamented to the Laudium Sun, “On Thursday night at around 11pm, two thieves jumped into my yard and stole a lot of items. When I checked, there were two swimming pool chairs, floodlights ??? and solar lights, and two of our religious Buddha statues gone. I heard some strange noises at around 11pm, but did not at that time, think there were thieves in our yard. It was only in the morning when we went into our yard, that we realised that our items had been stolen. We live near the Itireleng squatter camp and we believe that the culprits live in that area. Unfortunately, our streetlights are not working as usual and I believe these criminals are taking advantage of the darkness to target our homes. Crime continues to be a very serious concern in our area and many of the residents have raised this issue many times, but those in charge are not listening. We don’t want talk, we want action. I sincerely hope that the police will increase patrols in our area. Right now, the criminals seem to think they have free rein, with no one to stop them. I urge all law enforcement agencies to work together, to drive these brazen criminals out of our community. We cannot continue to live in fear day and night. If this situation continues, many Laudium residents may eventually feel forced to leave. It’s time for all of us to stay alert and take strong action to protect our neighbourhood.”
situation continues, many residents may feel forced to leave the area.
Kathmandu Street resident, Megan Padayachy, told the Laudium Sun, “Crime in Laudium is out of control and getting worse by the day, especially here in Ext 3. There is no law enforcement and criminals are doing whatever they please, without any consequences. Sadly, our politicians seem more focused on chasing money and fame, rather than fulfilling their duty to serve the people of our community. It’s truly unfortunate, but Laudium is in danger and the rising crime is making it harder for us to live here peacefully. If we want to fight crime, we first need to address the issue of corruption among our so-called leaders. Only then can we make a real change in Laudium. Right now, we’re just ordinary citizens, holding on to broken hopes.”
‘Ace’ Pillay, also of Kathmandu Street, said, “We are facing a growing number of crimes on this street and a major issue is that many of the streetlights are not working. The situation is really bad and we need those who are in leadership to acknowledge the crimes happening in our area and to take our concerns seriously. We voted for our Councillor and the CPF members to serve the community, it’s their job to act now, not to turn their backs on us, or just have talks about talks.”
