Plans are in the pipeline to hire 160 temporary workers to help patrol and clean up Nelson Mandela Bay’s beaches this festive season.
The temporary employees would bolster 45 tourism safety patrollers who are to be deployed to popular tourist spots across the city that are deemed vulnerable to criminals.
However, before hiring the additional temporary workers, the municipality needs the thumbs-up from the National Treasury under its public employment programme.
The metro’s summer safety and security plan to ensure holidaymakers and revellers enjoy a crime-free festive season was discussed at an economic development, tourism and agriculture committee meeting on Friday.
Fifteen of the 45 tourism safety patrollers already approved are to deployed to beaches in the south, eight in the northern areas, 16 in the central business district and six in New Brighton’s Mendi precinct.
A report tabled by the Bay’s acting executive director for economic development, Mpho Pebane, said there was a desperate need to boost security measures in the city after a recent flurry of crimes targeting visitors.
“To attract and host visitors, safety is one of the fundamental aspects that require attention,” the report says.
“This becomes even more important after a series of crimes that threatened our visitors in recent months.”
The Summerstrand area and the Donkin Reserve have been identified as crime hotspots where tourists are specifically targeted.
The tourism patrollers are to be deployed to the hot spots from November 1, and will be present at the beaches and on Route 67, linking the Campanile and the Athenaeum to Fort Fredericks, and other areas.
Councillors expressed concern that 45 patrollers would be insufficient to ensure the safety of tourists.
They said pending approval of the proposal by the Treasury, the the city’s safety and security directorate needed to present it’s own safety plan, which would include using the metro police.
Pebane said he hoped the Treasury would approve the proposal to deploy the 160 temporary workers to complement the 45 patrollers already authorised.
“It will also help if the safety and security directorate were to present their safety plans for the city so that we have an idea of what is going to happen so that we have a successful summer season where people in our city will feel safe,” he said.
Economic development political head Luxolo Namette said a joint meeting needed to be held with the safety and security directorate because the city had invested money in training the metro police.
“They must assist the city while we wait for approval from the National Treasury, and we will raise this with the relevant directorate.
“We have resolved there must be a joint meeting with safety and security so they can present their safety plans and we will contribute our ideas.”
ANC councillor Sicelo Mleve agreed.
“I like the idea of having our plan as a city and not be dependent of the approval of the National Treasury.
“We have to be proactive with our own plans on how to keep the city safe, hence I fully support this proposal.
“However, the safety plans must not be exclusive to tourism areas alone because tourists also go to townships where it’s not safe. We need security beefed up across the city.
ACDP councillor Marianne Lotter said she was concerned about crime in malls, which tourists also frequented.
“I’d like to know will be done with crime that takes place in malls because this is a very big problem and the number of safety patrollers as planned by the city won’t be enough.
DA councillor Renaldo Gouws said in Ward 2, where there were blue flag beaches, officials were finalising a pilot project to install security cameras.
“There’s a beachfront safety sector that’s in the works that I initiated.
“We will install security cameras in the blue flag beaches worth R150,000 which has been invested privately,” he said.
Gouws said the cameras would be able to identify suspicious vehicles and 15 to 20 patrollers would be deployed from Kings Beach to the first beacon.
“This pilot project will also be extended to other beaches once they obtain their blue flag status so this is not just for Ward 2 only.”
EFF councillor Pepsi James said: “I believe that these safety measures must start at the airport, where most of our tourists arrive.
“We need to have brochures with safety tips placed at the airport tourist office, vehicle rental companies and other public areas where tourists go — they will see we that we prioritise their safety as tourists.”
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