Cape Town - The Cape Town Central City Improvement District (CCID), just three days after the nationwide lockdown began, caught a number of opportunistic criminals attempting to take advantage of the unusual quietness in the CBD.
CCID chief executive Tasso Evangelinos said that while the criminals were chancers, the fact that they were caught had nothing to do with chance. He said this had raised the not-for-profit company’s safety and security department’s success rate of catching criminals to 98%.
“When the National State of Disaster was announced, our team swiftly shifted our working strategies to ensure that the CCID continues to deliver on its mandate and keep the city centre safe and clean, even while the CBD isn’t open for business,” said Evangelinos.
As the largest CCID in the country and one of the most successful, the CCID in line with taking the necessary precautions to protect both the frontline working staff and the public, has introduced precautionary safety measures to curb the spread of Covid-19.
He said they have started a new shift system for the staff, and trained them in Covid-19 protection protocols, as well as providing protective personal equipment, and putting in place rigorous hygiene safety.
Evangelinos said that along with providing an essential security and safety service, the CCID would also play a pivotal role in communicating and facilitating solutions.
“We have stepped up our distribution of information to all stakeholders to ensure everyone is constantly updated. We are constantly adapting as we go. Every day is a learning opportunity. The role of a CCID is to be consistently reliable to give stakeholders peace of mind. We’re active remotely and operationally,” said Evangelinos.
The safety and well-being of the team is one of the organisation’s top priorities,” said Evangelinos.