Councillor Eddie Andrews, mayoral committee member for area south, City of Cape Town
This letter is in response to “Traders fed up with crime, grime in Town Centre,” Plainsman June 13.
The City of Cape Town can confirm that it received the document. The document contains various issues pertaining to safety and security related to closed toilet facilities.
It must be stated upfront that no formal arrangements were approved or concluded between the City and the Fifth Avenue Traders’ Association.
The City had an informal, temporary arrangement with the association, in which the association agreed to provide labour services, and the City agreed to assist with cleaning materials, where needed, pending the completion of the process for providing expanded public works programme (EPWP) cleaners for the site.
At the time the City confirmed with Jasmine Page, secretary of the association, who was made aware that the City does not have an obligation to fund the initiative.
This is indeed a unique situation as the City had to close the ablutions facilities while it did not have cleaning staff to man the facilities on a full-time basis. The trader organisation offered assistance during this time.
The City is finalising an expanded public works programme process with the input of the local sub-councils and, once concluded, work opportunities will be created to look after the taxi facility in Mitchell’s Plain.
There are three to four law enforcement officers deployed to the Town Centre daily, depending on staff availability.
We conduct integrated operations with other role-players at least twice a month.
With regard to enforcing the by-laws, we conduct regular joint operations with the informal trading unit.
The avenues referred to, where most of these traders are located, are also patrolled randomly like the rest of the Town Centre.
