Buoyed by the enthusiastic support of civil society from all
walks of life and armed with a crime fighting strategy known as the broken
windows theory, the Metro Police led a clean-up campaign to remove offending
posters, illegally erected in North End.
The broken windows theory is a criminological theory that
states that visible signs of crime, civilian chaos and anti-social behaviour
encourages further crime including serious crimes.
Metro Police Chief Yolande Faro enthused about the spirit of
togetherness as communities originating from various African regions and China
(now naturalised South Africans) worked hand-in-hand with municipal departments
to remove the posters stuck on lamp posts, electrical installations and any
other available surface.
"We termed the initiative Simunye, we are one, as our ground
work to meet with the different organised communities in the city beforehand,
not only paid off, it also encouraged others to join in.
"It was especially heart-warming when people stepped in to
help with more water or a hand when the glue doggedly refused to give in,” Chief
Faro said.
The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Metro Police department
is responsible for municipal bylaw enforcement, traffic law enforcement and
crime prevention amongst others. The Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality Council
enacted the Outdoor Advertising bylaw on 25 March 2010.
Member of the Mayoral Committee for Safety and Security
Queenie Pink not only donned an illuminated vest, she also enthusiastically
lent a hand to help rid our city of these unsightly posters advertising from
"penis enlargements”, "safe and pain free abortions” to religious and social
events.
"If we want to ensure that we fully eradicate these
unsightly posters, spreading untruths in an attempt to sucker residents out of
their hard-earned cash, we have to work closely with the community as they are
living in the targeted areas.
"We would like to build a cleaner and safer city for our
residents and therefore need all hands on deck to stop offenders from illegally
posting more posters after we cleaned up. I therefore would like to encourage
the community to be our eyes and ears where they live.
"Strict bylaw enforcement will follow our efforts of today to
aesthetically improve all our suburbs. The reporting of the guilty parties will
go a long way to nip this practice in the bud,” MMC Pink said.
The illegal erection of posters can lead to a fine of at
least R1000.
Chief Faro said the event on Friday was a prevention,
educational and clean-up awareness operation that will be followed by strict
enforcement of the bylaw.
Prospective poster advertisers can obtain application forms
at the Building Inspectorate, Human Settlements Department, 4thFloor, Mfanasekhaya Gqobose Building (formerly known as Eric Tindale).
Ends
Issued on behalf of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality by
Municipal Spokesman Kupido Baron (082 780 2726 / 041 506 1500 / kbaron@mandelametro.gov.za /
@kupidobaron).