Johannesburg - In response to Rosettenville residents on Monday torching properties believed to be drug dens and brothels, City of Joburg mayor Herman Mashaba has convened a Joburg metro police department special task team to regularly raid the premises.
The mayor said that as soon as news of the protests broke, he accompanied member of the mayoral committee (MMC) for public safety Michael Sun and MMC for development planning Funzi Ngobeni to Rosettenville.
He was informed that community members had set fire to three houses and one tavern that they believed operated as brothels and drug dens.
A pub is looted and the furniture set alight in the street as residents march in an anti-drug and prostitution campaign. Picture: Supplied
“According to community members, these homes are illegally occupied by Nigerians who run these homes as brothels and have girls as young as nine working as prostitutes.
"Many of the women in these brothels are also alleged to have no official identification documentation.
“Some of these women, who work as prostitutes, told me that the brothels are supported by officers from Moffat View police station. These are serious allegations and I will be contacting provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General (Deliwe) De Lange to request an urgent investigation into these claims,” he said.
The homes also made use of illegal electricity connections and provided no proper sanitation facilities.
“Community members are afraid to leave their homes and have said they feel that the city and SAPS have let them down. Under the previous administration, criminals were able to operate with impunity. This can no longer be tolerated,” said Mashaba.
He said he understood the frustrations of the Rosettenville community and apologised for the government having let them down.
He implored them not to take the law into their own hands, and assured them that he would do everything in his power to ensure that these houses were rid of criminals and criminal activity.
“We have to ensure that it is the criminals who cannot rest in Johannesburg, and it is the communities that feel safe.
"I have already instructed MMC Sun to set up a specialised task team of metro officers to raid these buildings on a regular basis,” he said.
The mayor concluded that it was essential that the national government cleaned up its
act and ensured that there was quick and efficient processing of anyone entering the country. "This would protect those who wish to legitimately enter our country from criminals."