The Voortrekker Monument in Pretoria. Picture: Thobile Mathonsi/African News Agency (ANA) Archives
Johannesburg - The City of Tshwane has made great strides in preserving and safeguarding the Voortrekker Monument and its surrounding nature reserve following the recent rise in concerns regarding the crime and vandalism that plagued the monument.
The granite-structured landmark located on a hilltop in the south of Pretoria commemorates the Voortrekkers.
“The Voortrekker Monument is one of Tshwane’s most prominent landmarks which holds historic value. The City of Tshwane is readily open to work with the private sector, non-governmental organisations, and businesses to safeguard our infrastructure, ” said MMC for Corporate and Shared Services Kingsley Wakelin.
This comes after a meeting held by the City of Tshwane with the Federasie van Afrikaanse Kultuurvereniginge (FAK), the Voortrekker Monument, and relevant stakeholders, addressing the ongoing issues regarding the landmark and its surrounding areas.
“The meeting also served as a platform to clarify which areas the municipality is responsible for, thus eliminating misunderstandings. This will also improve the turnaround time on cable replacement and maintenance,” said Wakelin.
The metro has also made progress in addressing other issues including:
• The cutting of grass in specific risk areas, which will be done by both the City and the Voortrekker Monument
• Commencing with controlled grass burning
• Identifying and marking specific risk areas where crime occurs frequently
• Realising a significant reduction in cable theft in the area
• Implementing plans to establish a forum on crime prevention with stakeholders such as the Department of Public Works, South African Police Service (SAPS), and the City’s Cable Theft Unit
• Enabling a prospective intervention by a private company to sponsor and erect a fence
City of Tshwane mayor Cilliers Brink, also addressed other issues in the metro, which include the embattled capital’s finances which was flagged by the Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke, who painted a grim picture of the metro’s finances, saying it had serious irregularities.
However Brink has vowed to prioritise solving the municipality’s financial woes, while speaking at a PSG Wealth Management business breakfast in Pretoria earlier this week.
“We need to get control of the city’s finances and answer the concerns of the AG. Our vision for the city is to create a capital city that works for all its people. Finances of the city have been a challenge … We are in a cash crunch … We owe Eskom money, and that has an effect on service delivery,” said Brink.
The metro has also urged its communities to also partake in the protection of their local assets in the city, such as libraries and clinics.
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