Residents protest after hit-and-run tragedy

The classmates of the late Jayden Sei gathered at the spot he is known to have died and observed a moment of silence followed by a prayer and some singing. Picture: Timothy Bernard 26.03.2012

The classmates of the late Jayden Sei gathered at the spot he is known to have died and observed a moment of silence followed by a prayer and some singing. Picture: Timothy Bernard 26.03.2012

Published Mar 27, 2012

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Residents of Newlands in Joburg continued their blockage of Eric Street on Monday, burning tyres and smashing the road apart with pickaxes.

The blockade came after a seven-year-old boy was killed in a hit-and-run incident on Friday night.

The disgruntled community said Jaydan Sei was the fifth person to die and the ninth person to be hit (five children and four adults) by a car on the same stretch since 2010.

In January, three people were killed on the road in another hit-and-run incident involving a truck. There are no speed signs, traffic lights, working lights or “children crossing” signs anywhere.

A blue spraypainted X marked the spot where Jaydan was hit by what witnesses described as a white VW Polo speeding down the road. And 20m away on the other side of the road was a white wooden cross garnished in flowers, indicating the spot where Jaydan landed and died.

This Sunday would have been his eighth birthday.

“We want speed bumps,” chanted a group of more than 50 children behind a wall of burning tyres.

It was a protest of mostly mothers and children.

“Don’t kill our children!” read a banner hung across the street and which later caught alight.

The residents piled rubble into 30cm-high walls, making the street impassable to vehicles.

Bertha Sei went to identify her son’s body at the mortuary on Monday.

On Friday night, Jaydan was returning from playing soccer at the Union Stadium, where he played every day with his friends.

At 7pm, as it began to get dark, and without any working street lights, Jaydan crossed Eric Street.

His mother was making dinner when someone knocked on the door – Jaydan had been hit by a car.

“When I got to the street, he was lying on the ground still alive for about 30 minutes, bleeding from his forehead, eyes and ears.

“They must fix the problems we have on this road and find the man who murdered my baby,” said Sei.

Bradley Chaplin, 30, a local street vendor, witnessed the hit-and-run on Friday night.

“That white Polo was driving at high speed. Maybe 180km/h,” he said.

“But he didn’t stop driving, he just sped away.”

Around 4pm, Ward 82 DA councillor Susan Stewart addressed the protesting community.

“I called the Joburg MMC (member of the mayoral committee) for transport Rehana Moosajee and requested speed bumps. She told me there is no budget for that.

“This place looks like hell on earth and there is no service delivery, but I keep being told there is just no budget.”

The crowd didn’t take kindly to the councillor’s words, and 10 minutes later she was chased away by mothers with rocks in their hands.

At 5.30pm, Moosajee arrived to address the community. Standing over the white cross where Jaydan died, she said: “We believe it was a stolen vehicle with fake licence plates… I know the pain is immediate and the pain is shared. I’m angry and hurt.”

She denied telling Stewart there wasn’t money for speed bumps, saying: “This has nothing to do with budget. For three years running we have put speed bumps in 109 wards. They have not changed driver behaviour, but they do slow down the response times of emergency services.”

Sophiatown police spokesman Thomas de Bruyn said: “The licence plate of the vehicle was traced to a home in Bloemfontein. We are still investigating but no arrests have been made.” - The Star

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