Community clean-up crews returns

DPU, Land Invasion, LE, LE Aux, Trolley management company, Skip Go, Solid Waste, CPF and members of the public took part in the clean-up.

The clean-up crews in Table View are back after a few months on the sidelines.

Late last year, Community Cleanup suspended its operations, complaining it was no longer getting the protection it had come to expect from City law enforcement.

At the time, law enforcement pulled out of the fortnightly clean-ups, saying its resources were stretched going into the busy festive season (“Clean-up crews want protection,” Tabletalk, November 28, 2018).

At a meeting on Thursday February 28, Wendy Robertson, the Table View Community Police Forum Sector 2 chairperson, said that the Community Cleanup crews would start the clean-up operations again that following Saturday after reaching an agreement with law enforcement.

Community Cleanup was originally part of the Table View Community Police Forum but became a separate entity when CPF executive committee member Nick Long took over as project coordinator a few years ago.

However, it is still affiliated to the CPF and the Table View and Parklands neighbourhood watches.

Ms Robertson said that in the past, Community Cleanup would get together every second Saturday with Skipgo (a waste-transport service) and the City of Cape Town’s solid waste management department to clean up the community.

“We would often run into problems with volatile vagrants who refused to be moved along during our operations. We are happy to report that we have the backing of law enforcement once again to ensure the safety of our members during these clean ups,” she said.

Table View CPF chairman David Harris, who was also at the meeting, said all residents are responsible for keeping their neighbourhood clean.

“Each street committee in the neighbourhood should take ownership of their areas. If that could happen, we’d be creating fantastic living conditions,” he said.

Ms Robertson said: “People seem to think that the dumping is only caused by vagrants in the neighbourhood, but, in actual fact, there are some community members who are guilty of this as well. I know some of these culprits and will report them if I see illegal dumping,” she said.

Etsako Diaspora, a Parklands organisation representing Nigerian nationals, was also represented at the meeting by its general secretary, Leo Azebeokhai.

Mr Harris praised Mr Azebeokhai and his organisation for the work they were doing in the community, and a round of applause followed.

For its first clean-up of the year, last Saturday, Community Cleanup was assisted by the Displaced People’s Unit, the Anti-Land Invasion unit, law enforcement, Skipgo, Solid Waste, Table View CPF and some members of the public.

They covered a number of areas, including Potsdam, Park West, Sterling green belt, Leonardo Park and the canal at the Table View soccer field.

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