It is evident that residents and businesses in the Erasmia and Laudium areas are still concerned about the ongoing crimes in their respective areas and the poor service delivery from the ANC-led Tshwane Council.
Thus, many residents believe that the CPF District head responsible for both the Erasmia and Laudium areas, ANC member Shaheen Wahab and the ANC Ward Councillor of both areas (Ward 61), Cllr Naeem Patel (who is also part of the ANC PCO office comprising of Councillors, members from Gauteng Legislature and Parliament), should also be held accountable for the ongoing crime and grime in the area.
Seemingly, the pair have engaged the support of a new ‘praise singer,’ Yusuf Abramjee, the controversial former Erasmia resident, who was strongly linked to the apartheid regime and who has since moved to a private security estate.
This follows yet more complaints of crime by Erasmia residents, after a business on Fortuna Street was broken into, the previous Monday evening shortly before 10 pm. According to reports, four Black males broke into an Erasmia bakery, gaining entry through the ceiling of the premises, stealing computers, machinery and wiring, which they then removed from the back door of the bakery. Despite the huge items stolen, the thieves were not spotted by the Police, the CPF Patrollers or the about 30 Gauteng Wardens stationed at Erasmia, who have even been given a BMW X5, for patrols in the Erasmia area only.
Despite the poor security patrols in the area (even in Laudium), neither Abramjee nor Patel or Wahab are known to have raised their concerns to the community about the poor patrolling.
Zainab Abudin, owner of Zainab Abudin Bakery on Fortuna Street, Erasmia, told the Laudium Sun, “It was a very upsetting incident for us, as we lost several items from the bakery when thieves broke in through the back of the property and gained access via the ceiling, at around 9:30pm, after we had closed. I suspect it may have been an inside job, as the thieves seemed to know exactly where we kept valuable items. They stole computers, machinery and some wiring. When reviewing our CCTV footage, we saw four Black male thieves breaking through the ceiling from the back and causing damage to our property. This is extremely frustrating and we are very concerned about the vandalism also. Crime is just too high in our area and we, together with others, are increasingly fearful of operating our businesses in the area. The police and other security patrollers must conduct proper patrols in our area. They also need to be more vigilant to ensure our safety.”
Mohamed Rashaad of Fortuna Street, told the Laudium Sun, “Vandalism and break-ins are common in our area, with peak crime occurring at night. We believe that many of the criminals are coming from the new squatter camp near the M26 road (Ntswane Village), which is really frightening. Despite having gates and security measures, crime continues unabated and the criminals seem to operate openly under the radar of law enforcement. We need our law enforcement agencies to increase patrols and to be more vigilant in the area.”
Fortuna Street resident, Sana Malik, told the Laudium Sun, “Crime in our area is unstoppable, with many break-ins happening regularly. Nowadays, we actually fear for our lives and the safety of our homes. We have families and it is becoming increasingly difficult to live here in peace. This area is not safe at all and urgently needs proper police patrolling, as well as security gates and guards to protect residents.”
