CoCT deploys security to fight off extortionists from MyCiti construction sites
This follows an extortion-related incident at the city's Myciti depot in Philippi, where a security guard and his K-9 patrol dog were injured in a shooting earlier this year.
Cape Town mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis joined Mayco member for Urban Mobility Rob Quintas and MyCiTi project manager Johan Fowler to inspect the construction of the elevated sky circle in Lansdowne on Thursday 31 October 2024. Picture: Carlo Petersen/ Eyewitness News.
CAPE TOWN - The City of Cape Town says security units deployed at MyCiti construction sites are keeping extortionists at bay.
This follows an extortion-related incident at the city's Myciti depot in Philippi, where a security guard and his K-9 patrol dog were injured in a shooting earlier this year.
A MyCiti Bus route construction along A.Z Berman Road, in Mitchells Plain, was ground to a halt due to extortion-related threats in February.
The City of Cape Town's MyCiti Project Manager, Johan Fowler, says there have been no extortion threats at their construction sites recently.
"We haven't had any threats other than just theft and vandalism, which is a constant nuisance for the contractor, but no extortion threats."
Fowler says the city's safety and security units are supporting the project.
"We're not security experts, but we're doing the best we can and we are managing the problem."
Fowler says if everything goes according to plan the MyCiti project should reach completion in 2027.