Chriswell Nazo joined a crime-fighting group in Gugulethu after hearing how residents were being robbed as they walked to and from the station.
His sister was also one of those affected so he thought of how he could help.
He got together with friends to form a group that would accompany women to the train station.
A number of people supported him as they realised there was a crime problem.
However, a number of challenges followed with the group having to walk long distances.
They also had no uniform and no necessary support.
Fast forward to Tuesday October 29, and the days of walking several kilometres a shift are over, thanks to a donation of 12 bicycles they received from Bicycling Empowerment Network (BEN) and the Movement for Change and Social Justice (MCSJ) at the Gugulethu Sports Complex.
“They came at the right time when we really needed them. Remember we have nothing at our disposal, no support or back-up to fight crime. These bicycles will help us move around quickly and fast. It will be easy for us to reach certain points that were difficult before to reach. We are grateful to the organisers and the donors for this gift,” said Mr Nazo.
Clad in their lime uniform, the members sang and danced before the handover.
With the festive season mere weeks away, the team looked ready to tackle crime.
The team was happy it would be able to operate in a bigger area.
Organiser for the movement, Phelisa Dlangamandla said her organisation addresses specific challenges and promotes gender equality and the improvement of men and women’s health through education. She said addressing crime is part of its mandate.
Ms Dlangamandla said MCSJ originated out of a need to address several health and social issues that have emerged in various neighbourhoods.
“We are working to strengthen the relationship between various non-governmental organisations and community organisations in the area to address these issues and improve access to health and social services. To achieve these goals, we host workshops, open dialogues about sensitive issues in the community, and organise short-term campaigns to address challenges,” she said.
She said the movement bought six bicycles to deal with crime and BEN bought six too. She said the bicycles will help the watches move faster. “We are dealing with the issues of crime in our areas and we want neighbourhood patrollers to be able to move around and fight crime. There is also an issue of a high rate of unemployment, we are also promoting cycling so that youth can make their own choices by being involved in programmes that are happening in our communities,” she said.
MCSJ is a joint initiative between several partners who share the same values and would like to collaborate to bring change in the community.
