As much as CPF chair Shaheen Wahab from the ANC and ANC Cllr Naeem Patel (as part of the ANC PCO) can ‘huff & puff’ concerning their ‘greatness’ in helping fight crime in the area, for many residents, both of them are as good as ‘dead wood.’
Many residents say that since Shaheen and Naeem came into office, confidence in them, the SAPS and the Metro Police has dropped significantly and in fact, it is during their time, that residents were forced to put up street gates at their own expense, out of desperation to protect themselves and their homes from the increasing number of thieves prowling the area.
This follows, this week, yet more reports of crime reported to the Laudium Sun, in a gated street area, for stats purposes.
In one of the latest incidents of crime reported, two African males are believed to have broken into the home of Rajen Bhana in Himalaya Street Ext 3, Laudium, the previous Saturday night. Fortunately, the thieves fled before they could steal much, as the homeowner arrived just in time, after getting a message from his alarm company.
evening, but fled when the alarm went off.
Rajen told the Laudium Sun, “I was not at home when the incident happened, as I had gone out to watch a match not far from my house. I left my house at around 6:30pm and at about 8pm, I received an alert from my alarm system on my phone. I immediately realized something was not right, so I rushed back home, leaving the match. When I arrived, I found my house in a mess. The front window was completely broken, but after checking everywhere, it did not seem that much was stolen, as I could not immediately identify what was stolen. I thank God that nothing major happened. I asked my neighbours if they noticed anyone suspicious after I left my home and they said that they did see two Black guys roaming near my house earlier, but did not think much about it at the time. I believe those could be the guys who broke into my house through the front window. I think they got scared when the alarm went off and ran away then. I was lucky to have arrived just in time and I’m grateful that no valuable items were stolen. But honestly, crime in our area is getting worse by the day and the gates on Himalaya Street are not helping at all. In fact, crime seems to be increasing because people feel a false sense of safety behind the gates, when in reality, we are not safe at all. Criminals are taking over and we are losing the battle against crime.”
Monique Narayan of Himalaya Street, told the Laudium Sun, “I found out about the break-in through our street’s WhatsApp group and honestly, it’s very scary. These days, it feels like every week there’s another house being targeted. The number of break-ins in our area has become extremely high and it’s creating a lot of fear among residents. We are living with constant worry, always checking if our doors are locked, wondering if someone is outside and even feeling nervous when we hear small noises at night. This is not the way we should have to live. The Police, the CPF Patrollers and the Gauteng Wardens (who I happened to hear about recently), really need to do more patrols in our area and take stronger action, because it seems like criminals are becoming more confident to commit crime in our area, knowing that they can get away with it. We all work really hard for what we have and it’s so heartbreaking to see our community living in fear like this. We just want to feel safe in our own homes again. The authorities must increase patrols, install more street cameras and ensure that those responsible are caught and punished. We want to live freely, without the constant fear of criminals lurking around. Safety and security are basic rights and our community deserves better protection.”
Tyron Brendt, also of Himalaya Street, told the Laudium Sun, “Crime has really increased in Laudium and I think it’s now time for residents to take serious action against criminals. Our law enforcement has failed us repeatedly and we no longer feel safe under their protection. Every week, we hear of new incidents, yet nothing seems to change. We can’t just sit back and hope for things to improve. The community must unite and take a stand before it’s too late. If we don’t act now, it will become impossible to find peace and safety in Laudium.”
