Warwick Bruce Chapman

Dear Friends (and mischievous others)

The media have cottoned onto this so it is the appropriate time for me to clarify publicly.

Effective end June 2013, I have resigned as a councillor of the eThekwini municipality and as Deputy Chairperson of the Democratic Alliance in KwaZulu-Natal. I have been given an opportunity to apply my professional skillset to a new position which has been created at the DA’s National Head Office in Cape Town, where I will be overseeing the party’s various information systems.

I have served the public in the capacity of ward councillor for nearly five years now. My introduction to elected politics as ward councillor for Pinetown, and then Glenwood / Umbilo was a baptism of fire. Both are challenging communities with difficult issues to fight, and know I am a better public representative for these experiences.

The media, egged on by the mischievous others, have cooked up another story about why I am leaving. Don’t worry about that. The truth boils down to me making a change for myself that allows me to make a more strategic and hopefully more effective contribution to the party and cause I signed up for in late 2007.

I have lived and worked in Ballito and Durban for the past 25+ years of my life and I look forward to the change of City, and the challenges of a new role.

The decision to resign and accept the position offered to me was extremely difficult to make. I have invested myself heavily in the challenges facing the Glenwood and Umbilo community, and in the political challenges facing the Democratic Alliance in KwaZulu-Natal. Also extremely important to me is the role I play at the Natal Settlers Memorial Homes as the head of a team of passionate individuals who have been setting that crucial social welfare organisation back on the right track over the past year.

I have thus negotiated to stay on in my current position for an additional two months in order to ensure those responsibilities are handed over as effectively and responsibly as possible.

I will miss the people of Glenwood and Umbilo, the wonderful Bulwer Park, the warm ocean and Goundens’ famous bunny chows.

At heart I will always be a Glenwood boy, and an ambassador of KwaZulu-Natal.

I remain committed to the Democratic Alliance as this country’s greatest hope for clean and effective government.

Yours faithfully
Warwick Chapman

1. Collect litter near your property whenever you see it
2. Report dumping and don’t give up until it is cleared up
2. Clean your yard, paint your house, renovate
3. Businesses can join the Umbilo Business Forum
4. Community organisations can join the Glenwood Community Forum
5. Enhance our working relationship by joining the Community Policing Forum
6. Participating in the CPF’s community patrols to better understand our safety issues
7. BREAK DOWN WALLS! Walls have closed off and segregated our once open and integrated community. Contrary to popular belief, walls almost never enhance security. In many cases walls hide criminal activity which is taking place from people passing by. Replace your walls with fences. Get to know your neighbours again. Give the surrounding community the ability to keep an eye on your safety.
8. Use our parks, and help to keep them clean.
9. Get the council to trim overgrown bushes, or trim them yourselves.
10. If you know someone who speeds in our residential neighbourhood, let them know how you feel.

If all community members contribute on one way or another, we will collectively contribute to the improvement in the quality and safety of our community.

Dear Editor

Firstly, to the resident who SMS’d last week about the derelict house in Somerset Ave, the formal processes for remedy have been exhausted and the issue has now been handed over to the enforcement team for action to be taken against the property owner. Unfortunately these things do take time but you can rest assured that in the background the cogs are moving.

To the land owners in Essex and Enfield roads who are working to clean up their derelict buildings, thank you very much for doing your bit to rid this community of grime and contribute to our efforts to combat crime. With the support of eThekwini officials we are also following up on other derelict houses including those in Evans Rd, Davenport Ave, Macdonald Rd and Bartle Rd.

You might ask what it is that you can do as a member of this community, or any other for that matter, to contribute to cleaning up and improving safety? In short, you can help in one of two areas: crime and grime. Combating crime is only effective when the community partners with SAPS, and getting involved with the Community Policing Forum is the most effective way of achieving that. Neighbourhood watches which work in conjunction with the CPF are another. Ridding our community of grime makes criminals feel less at home, and when we feel safer to be out and about in our numbers, we reduce the spaces in which criminals operate. We do this by maintaining our buildings, keeping vacant plots and bushes under control, cleaning our parks, and ensuring our public infrastructure is in a good state of repair.

You can help by taking initiative where you see a problem to either mobilise community members and tackle the problem ourselves or to work with public officials to find a solution. We have much to do in both combating crime and ridding our community of grime but a collective desire to improve will ensure we see the change we need. Inch by inch, with the support of community members, we will make Umbilo and Glenwood among the safest and most friendly places to live in eThekwini.

Warwick Chapman, Ward Councillor for Glenwood and Umbilo

Speed and alcohol are the two major causes of fatal accidents on our roads, and the combination of the two are a risk too many people take on a daily basis. In Glenwood in particular, but in the rest of eThekwini in general, motorists have lost their fear of being caught speeding. As a result we’re seeing more frequent occurrences of vehicles speeding on busy residential roads and late at night racing at many times the speed limit.

The tragic deaths of 6 students in Glenwood during May, when their driver lost control and hit a tree at well over twice the speed limit, is one terrifying example of speeding on our residential roads. Many more less serious accidents occur, knocking down walls, fences and light poles and posing a serious risk to other road users.

Myself and my predecessor have been inundated with requests for speedhumps along roads in the Glenwood area. However it neither practical to install speed humps on these longs arterial roads, nor does the council have the budget.

It is my opinion that the only solution to the problem of speeding in residential areas is regular enforcement of speed limits. Driver behaviour will only be changed when every regular driver on our roads is constantly worried about whether they will be caught for speeding or other traffic violations such as jumping robots or stop streets.

A month ago I requested that Metro Police place a focus on speed enforcement on Clark Rd eastbound between Cato and Manning Rds, and requested further that trapping be frequent and random, during the day and especially at night. I further requested a schedule of speed enforcement activities on other roads in Glenwood, not limited to Frere/Bartle and Bulwer/Nicolson roads.

Metro Police have reverted that the complaint is being investigated. I have since escalated this issue to the Director of Specialised Enforcement and will continue to push Metro Police for action.

Enquiries:
Cllr Warwick Chapman
083 7797 094
ward33@ethekwini.org

Damage to Manning Rd caused by under ground water flow.  It was not a water main but perhaps a stormwater or sewage main.