Eight-million rand — that is the amount of damage done to Route 67 in Nelson Mandela Bay that has seen priceless artworks stolen in recent years.
The metro had hoped to fix the iconic tourism hotspot with R600,000 to repair the damage with recycled goods that would not attract scrap metal thieves.
The proposal, however, was turned down during an economic development portfolio committee meeting on Tuesday, with councillors demanding to see a safety and security plan first that would see the route protected going forward.
Route 67 off the Donkin Reserve, which comprises public artworks symbolising Nelson Mandela’s years dedicated to securing freedom for all the people of SA, is in a shocking state.
It is in such a filthy state that tour operators are too embarrassed to take visitors there.
ACDP councillor Lance Grootboom said while the route had attracted local and foreign tourists in the past, it would be pointless go ahead with repairs until it was safeguarded from further vandalism.
“There is no problem with repair work but we need to engage with the safety and security department to make sure measures are in place to protect the asset.”
He said the metro had insourced more than 600 security guards and that they should be used.
“We also can’t keep attributing municipal vandalism to Covid-19.
“That is an old excuse as vandalism still happens today.”
DA councillor Terri Stander said every R10 spent on repairs needed to be valued as it would be a waste if not protected.
“We also need to ensure our city is safe and clean, with ablution facilities fixed.
“We must have a plan to make sure that criminals don’t come close to tourists walking around,” she said.
Addressing the committee, Mandela Bay Development Agency operations executive Debbie Hendricks said to avoid future vandalism the metal along the route would be replaced with recycled material.
She said the vandalism was due to issues with municipal security guards and the metro police not patrolling tourism hotspots.
ANC councillor Makhi Feni said the MBDA was only focusing on one side of the metro which was contributing to the constant vandalism.
He said there was nothing being done for the townships.
The item was deferred and the committee agreed that a safety and security plan was needed before any spending on repairs was approved by the committee and later the council.
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