Residents shoot down City’s report at mayor’s meeting

Mitchell’s Plain residents refuted the number of shootings listed on the City of Cape Town’s database for recent months.

They dismissed mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith’s report that the City’s control room only received three calls about shootings in the past six months.

He was part of mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis’s entourage at a “stakeholder engagement” meeting at Eastridge community hall on Monday October 17.

Residents at the meeting heckled and mumbled in agreement with Morgenster resident Steven Samuels, who said Mr Smith should get some other figures. “He (Mr Smith) got his facts wrong. These shots are fired from gangsters. The guy that shoots won’t go and report it. The victims who are shot won’t go and report; that is the problem,” he said.

Mr Samuels said just two hours before the meeting shots were fired and that several other shootings happened in the week. “Please get some other figures,” he said.

Mr Lewis advocated for the use of the ShotSpotter system – a gunshot detection acoustic surveillance technology – in communities, which would alert law enforcement to shots being fired, pin-point its location and that this information could be followed up afterwards.

“So next time when JP comes he can say the community reported three gunshots but we know that there was 103,” he said.

Mr Lewis only allowed five questions from the crowd in the hall.

Thereafter questions could be asked directly to various line departments and their Mayco representatives present.

Residents were encouraged to log C3 notifications, that is report municipal service related issues on the City’s website.

During the monthly Sub-council 12 meeting on Thursday October 20, DA ward councillors complimented the mayor’s meeting,

Washiela Harris, councillor for Ward 82, said the mayor’s visit was “so successful and so well-organised”.

“The mere fact that the Mayco members with all of their line departments were there; it was well executed,” she said. “Our residents are becoming to be feel confident. We are bringing the bigwigs out to our Mitchell’s Plain community,” she said, adding that the venue was in walking distance for residents.

However, opposition political party proportional representation (PR) councillor Grant Classen, for the Africa Restoration Alliance (ARA), said he did not receive an invitation to the meeting.

Sub-council chairman Solomon Philander apologised and said that it was an oversight on their side. He said that 270 people attended the meeting and that they moved in and out of the venue.

“There was really good engagement,” he said. “It is good that the mayor see the size of our venue.

“Swartklip (indoor sports centre) is a big venue but it is not in use. We use the reality on the ground. We are not here to window-shop because the mayor comes in here,” he said.

Cape Coloured Congress (CCC) PR councillor Duwayne Jacobs said that all councillors should be involved in public meetings.

Saul Markgraff, for the Good Party, said he was disappointed with the venue size to host the mayor in. Mr Markgraff said the venue size disrespected the community.

“The mayor of Cape Town coming to a small hokkie in Eastridge, that is not fair, it is an embarrassment and insult to our people,” he said.

“A bigger venue would have been more appropriate to see the reality of who is really coming out to see the mayor,” he said.

Mr Markgraff said the venue size disrespected the community.