Erasmia residents are living in fear, saying that they have noticed an influx of suspicious looking ‘strangers’ walking freely on their streets, more so since the increase in the number of squatters who are illegally occupying the vast open land nearby, on the M26, between the bridge and the cheese shop.
This, despite the ANC’s Panyaza Lesufi as Premier of Gauteng, once more making false promises about two months back, that he would remove the squatters, even if it means that he would meet them in court. Also, the silence of Cllr Naeem Patel, as a member of the ANC PCO and Shaheen Wahab, as district CPF head, when more and more of the squatters started to settle in the area next to the cheese shop, remains of concern.
Residents claim that many of these ‘strangers’ are criminals and looking for the first opportunity to break-into homes in the area. This follows a home on Verster Street being burgled this past Sunday (Oct 19). Despite a community initiative security concrete fence erected across the street, due to the close proximity of the squatter camp, known as ‘Ntswane Village,’ thieves still managed to break-into the house while the owners were away for the day. The homeowner who pleaded to the Laudium Sun, not to reveal his identity or include his house photo, said, “We left our house around midday on Sunday and returned at around 9pm in the evening. I was shocked when I came home, as I found my front gate opened. Then when I went to my front door, I found the front door and the burglar gate forcefully opened. Our house was ransacked and a number of items were stolen, including a DSLR Canon camera with a spare lens and a hand held stabiliser stick.”
In another incident of crime reported to the Laudium Sun for stats purposes, two Black males were spotted in a small private security estate the previous Thursday evening, at around 7pm. Homeowner, Ayesha Ismail, of Essa Mews Estate on Barbara Coetzer Street, Erasmia, managed to raise the alarm, resulting in the thieves running away, but fortunately before they could enter her house.
Ayesha, told the Laudium Sun, “It was around 7pm on Thursday evening, when I was at home and busy with some chores. Suddenly, I heard strange noises coming from the back part of my house. Since we live in a security estate, I did not think that the noise was something serious like criminals trying to get inside the house. Then I heard the noise again and I just felt uneasy and was concerned. Because it was already dark, I felt that I should rather call out to my neighbours for help. After shouting for help, my neighbours immediately went to check from their side what was happening and that’s when they saw two thieves trying to jump over the back fence, to get into our yard. As soon as the intruders realised they had been spotted, they fled the scene and managed to escape before we could catch them. Luckily, nothing major happened and they did not manage to steal anything from our house. Still, the incident was frightening and made us realise how unsafe things have become in Erasmia lately. The level of crime in our area is becoming worse, with the increasing number of strangers walking on our streets, seemingly coming from the nearby squatter camp. All residents need to be extra careful and with the festive season approaching, we really need to be extra cautious. This is the time when criminals take advantage of people being busy or distracted and housebreakings and thefts tend to increase. We need more visible police patrols in Erasmia to discourage criminals from targeting our homes. At the same time, as a community, we must look out for one another
and remain alert at all times. We cannot rely only on the police. Neighbours must work together, report suspicious activity immediately and ensure that security cameras and lights are working properly. The criminals are getting smarter and bolder, but if we stay united and one step ahead of them, we can help curb crime in our area and make our neighbourhood safer for everyone.”
Aboo Bakr Manjra of Barbara Coetzer Street told the Laudium Sun, “Almost every day, some sort of crime is happening in our area. It has become extremely frightening because we feel as though we are fighting this battle alone. There seems to be very little help from the police, the local security companies, or even the community patrols who are supposed to keep watch. It’s as if residents are left to protect themselves and that’s not how it should be. We are living in constant fear. We can’t even relax in our own homes and every small noise outside makes us anxious that something bad is happening. Crime has become a daily reality for many of us and it’s really heartbreaking to see how unsafe our community has become, more so since the mushrooming of the squatter camps around us. We keep hearing about house break-ins, car thefts and petty crime and yet, no real action seems to be taken against those responsible. To prevent further crime, the police must wake up and start doing their jobs properly. There need to be more visible patrols and faster response times when incidents are reported. The criminals must know that there is law and order in our area and that they can’t just do whatever they want and get away with it. At the same time, our local security companies and community policing forums must become more active and co-ordinate better with residents. The safety of Erasmia depends on everyone working together; from law enforcement to ordinary residents. If we don’t unite and take this seriously, crime will only continue to get worse. We love our neighbourhood and want to live in peace, but for that to happen, the authorities must take immediate and firm action before things get even worse”
Fatima Ahmed, also of Barbara Coetzer Street, told the Laudium Sun, “The times we are living in are really difficult and we are no longer safe. Criminals are taking over our area while we just keep talking and not taking any real action. Crime must stop and as a community, we need to stand together and take steps to protect ourselves. We must also put pressure on the police to do their jobs properly and show that law and order still exists in our area, before things get completely out of control.”