By Ziyah News Reporter
STAKEHOLDERS of the Crime Liason Committee (CLC) have called for stronger accountability and implementation of resolutions aimed at improving crime prevention in the border town.
Speaking during the CLC meeting held on Tuesday, Zimborders General Manager Nqobile Ncube said there is need for authorities to act on issues raised during previous meetings and provide progress reports.
“Can we have resolutions from this meeting taken to the responsible authorities so that when we meet next time, we should be able to trace progress in reference to previous meetings,” said Ncube.
He said stakeholders could not continue raising the same concerns repeatedly without practical solutions being implemented.
One of the major concerns raised during the meeting was the lack of proper house numbering in residential areas around Beitbridge, which stakeholders said was affecting police investigations, particularly in robbery cases.
Participants noted that police often struggle to locate crime scenes quickly because many houses are either not numbered or are poorly identified.
Ncube said the issue had already been raised during previous meetings held last year, where the municipality was urged to provide police with location plans to help officers easily identify houses using maps.
“In previous meetings, council was urged to provide police with the location plan so that they can easily identify houses from the map,” he said.
He said the Municipality of Beitbridge should enforce compulsory house numbering and later bill residents for the service if property owners failed to comply voluntarily.
“If people are not placing house numbers, why can the Municipality of Beitbridge not be compelled to forcibly number the houses and later bill the residents?” said Ncube.
Residents also raised concerns over the disorderly numbering system in some suburbs, describing it as haphazard and poorly coordinated.
One resident said the municipality had been reluctant to officially name streets and suburbs, resulting in confusion in residential areas.
“Our council is reluctant in naming the streets and suburbs. They end up naming suburbs after street names have already become dominant,” the resident said.
The resident added that proper street naming must come before the implementation of an effective house numbering system.
“We cannot have numbers without naming the streets,” the resident said.
Stakeholders at the meeting agreed that improving house identification systems would not only assist police in responding to crimes faster, but would also improve service delivery and urban planning within Beitbridge.