Dear Mr. Maimane,
Let me state right off the bat that I feel open letters on the internet are generally a waste of time unless real action follows. But having said that I’m willing to gamble that there is a chance that this open letter will somehow reach you and bring about change to central Cape Town’s Long Street, a historic and integral part of the city.
Whether it’s your personal publicist who reads this first or maybe you’re just unwinding after a days work of being at the helm of the party the Western Cape loves, perhaps while checking your own Facebook or Twitter. Long Street is nearly at the point of no return in terms of crime and lack of safety.
My voice is a tiny drop in a sea of varying opinions about the matter. But we can’t sit back and let this happen without somebody informing you of this. You have pressing issues, that is a fact. More so pressing than this issue I’m sure, but hear me out if you will.
So far, not a single word has been uttered by the Democratic Alliance about the worrying safety aspect of Long Street. Muggings, pickpockets and victimised tourists all paint an ugly picture about a street with so much potential. It’s out of control, and hopefully that’s just a figure of speech.
I do not want to delve into racketeering accusations for my own safety sake. There are reports circulating about this, but I feel that’s not the area I’m comfortable addressing with you. Instead, I can let you know what the people are saying about how to improve the situation.
Zero tolerance on crime. Zero tolerance on aggressive begging. Zero tolerance on everything that flaunts the same law our government has prided itself on bringing to the people. A protest would perhaps bring about more change than an open letter to you on the internet, but starting with this letter, you have the power to make a difference for us and restore the street to being a safe place once more. It’s a beautiful city, but that’s reserved entirely for other parts of this publication.
Some are calling for a boycott, some are calling for protest, but let’s start in the here and now before resorting to that.
The CCID here is great, and have assisted in many incidents which have occurred on Long Street, but the consensus is that it’s just not enough. Having said that, steps have been taken just this afternoon to increase security, starting with a forum.
@MrCPT @CapeTownEtc Let’s encourage businesses to attend monthly SAPS sector meetings for public. We’ll post details as meetings happen.
— Cape Town CCID (@CapeTownCCID) June 24, 2015
I love their spirit though.
Be courteous at all times. Thanks Cape Town. https://t.co/XfRh9aL9lc
— Cape Town CCID (@CapeTownCCID) June 24, 2015
We are curious as to whether you intend on taking additional action here.
Thank you Mr. Maimane for reading this, or to your personal publicist, hopefully both, for hearing me out. I hope to get word back from you at your earliest convenience about a solution.
Regards from us.
