The eThekwini Municipality recently conducted a clean up operation in Albert Park in Durban.
Image: eThekwini Municipality
The Umbilo Business Association (UBA) is concerned about the repercussions the removal of homeless people and drug addicts will have on the businesses and residential areas adjoining Albert Park.
The eThekwini Municipality recently conducted a clean-up operation of the eyesore Albert Park and fenced off the area so that residents could reclaim the park and put it to good use. Drug addicts and homeless people had created makeshift shelters in the park - a problem that the municipality has been grappling with for more than a decade.
Ian Campbell-Gillies, a representative of the Umbilo Business Association, said that over many years the SAPS and Metro pursued an 'unconscionable policy of chasing homeless/addicted/ criminal communities from one part of Durban to another'.
“It was not entirely their fault; the ANC's centrist policies have failed to provide funding and humane guidelines for first-world solutions to the problem. For the very first time, subsequent to enclosing various parks in the Umbilo area, Metro recognised the need for government policy and funding with respect to the homeless of Durban,” he said.
Campbell-Gillies added that this was done by allowing a group to occupy a disused power substation on Khuzimpi Shezi Road in Umbilo.
“Someone finally developed a bit of Ubuntu humanitarian conscience within Ethekweni political structures. This is a step in the right direction only if the same recent convert to kindness realises that this must be very temporary as businesses cannot continue to trade and pay rates and taxes surrounded by hopeless and hungry individuals,” Campbell-Gillies said.
Campbell-Gillies added that it remains to be seen whether municipality authorities have real courage and will follow through to complete the process to the satisfaction of both homeless and business interests in Umbilo.
eThekwini ward 33 and DA Councillor Fran Kristopher said reports from residents and businesses were that a large number of displaced people have now resettled in places like Williams Road and Renaissance Park in Umbilo. Kristopher said these areas are now under immense pressure, with growing concerns about public health, safety, and the increasing presence of criminal elements that hide among homeless people.
“While Albert Park has been restored, the surrounding wards are now bearing the brunt of poor planning and lack of foresight. I have written to the municipality’s safer cities department seeking answers on how the city is planning to mitigate homelessness,” she said.
Kristopher said that the ongoing humanitarian crisis stemming from the displacement of homeless individuals across the municipality is concerning and he called for a holistic approach to tackle homelessness.
“The need to maintain public spaces and ensure the safety and cleanliness of our city is most welcome, but this cannot come at the cost of simply shifting the problem from one area to another. This situation lays bare the municipality’s failure to provide a sustainable, humane, and coordinated response to homelessness. Homelessness is not a policing issue, it is a social crisis,” Kristopher said.
Mdu Nkosi, IFP eThekwini leader, welcomed the turnaround strategy for Albert Park and called for the reprofiling of those around the park and railway lines. He said previous studies have shown that not all are homeless with some of them using it as a front for criminality and drug dealing. He also called for stricter law enforcement.
“They are there because of drug addiction and not listening to their parents. Some of them are well-educated and come from good homes and backgrounds. There are organisations feeding them and we appear to be too lenient and give them the impression that what they are doing is normal. The municipality needs all the support to find shelters to house the legitimate homeless people,” Nkosi said.
The municipality will be set up a fan zone at Albert Park for the 2025 Nedbank Cup final on Saturday, 10 May. The municipality stated that there will be tight security, entertainment and family-friendly activities during the live broadcast at the fan parks.
A concerted effort to reclaim Albert Park has been made by residents, led by Ward 32 Councillor, Protas Mngonyama (right). The purpose of the joint clean-up operation was to remove the rubble in and around the once green space and infiltrate drug dens, dealers and users.
Image: eThekwini Municipality