- Kamogelo Mthembu, 46, wants a police station in Skierlek, Mamelodi, where she says women face violence and children go missing.
- Skierlek residents are demanding regular police patrols, tarred roads and running water, while raising concerns about break-ins at a local school.
A Mamelodi mother is tired of hearing about missing children and women being killed in her community.
Kamogelo Mthembu, 46, from the Kopanong section of Skierlek, says she wants a police station to help keep women and children safe.
She cast her vote at the Christ Resurrection Ministry voting station in Ward 15 on Wednesday, 4 November, hoping the next councillor will take crime seriously.
“As a resident and a woman, we face challenges, including the killing of women, the kidnapping of children and children going missing. We are often called at night by parents telling us that their children have gone missing. As a woman, I feel bad about this,” she said.
Kamogelo told Scrolla.Africa that residents need police officers who can respond when people are in danger.
“My wish is for the next councillor to address these challenges. We need a local police station and a Community Policing Forum (CPF) that will be able to help us,” she said.
She also wants children to have somewhere safe to play and receive help with their schoolwork.
“I am also asking for a sports ground for our children and an aftercare centre where they can get help with their homework after school,” she said.
Community leader Elias Makega shares her concerns about crime.
He called for regular police patrols and said violence was a serious problem in the area.
“Every month-end, we have a problem with killings. We often find dead people. Even this morning, we found three people, two of whom were injured and one who died,” he said.
Makega also wants the incoming Ward 15 councillor to fix the roads.
“The candidate who wins Ward 15 must fix our roads. We have a problem with our main roads. They have started putting down G5, but there is still a lot of dust. We want tarred roads so that the dust can be reduced,” he said.
Another resident, Themba Mthembu, said people were tired of depending on water tankers.
He wants running water in homes and raised concerns about the quality of water delivered to the community.
“We are struggling too much with water. We are tired of water tankers. We are asking for running water because the water from the tanks is sometimes not clean enough,” he said.
Themba also complained about break-ins at local schools.
He said windows had been broken at container classrooms at Kutumela Melefi Intermediate Farm School.
For Kamogelo, the election is a chance to choose a councillor who will listen to residents and address the problems they face.
Her biggest wish is for women and children in Skierlek to feel safe.
