Suburban
Peter Tanyanyiwa Suburban Reporter
THE Borrowdale Ratepayers and Residents Association (BRRA) says it wants to encourage the concept of area champions in recognition of residents who make outstanding contributions in their communities.
BRRA is borrowing the concept from the efforts being made by the Greystone Park community in managing their area in terms of security and environmental issues. The Greystone Park community security has been responsible for keeping away residents who had resorted to dumping their waste at the entrance of the Borrowdale District Office.
Recently members of their security team were seen picking up litter on Gaydon Road.
BRRA encouraged all residents to join hands and embrace the concept of area champions because if they don’t do it themselves chances of someone else doing it for you are slim if not just a dream.
In an interview, BRRA chairperson Mr Robert Mutyasira said they emulate how the Greystone Park community are handling their affairs and they would want to see the work replicated across the whole of Ward 18.
“The security booms and guard cabins on almost every street are a sign of a well organised community who have taken charge of their welfare. Such initiatives are usually triggered by one person who makes a deliberate decision to mobilise the community for positive impact. We need more people of this kind. The communities we admire today were made by people just like all of us. Greystone Park is a shining example and most of what it is today owes it to Ellen Dove, who has worked relentlessly to usher in remarkable transformation.
“When our service providers who include the police and local authority are spread thin, it would be absurd to sit back and watch. Doing something is always better than doing nothing at all. Personally I have great emulation for positive mobilisation and I have taken it up in my own neighbourhood. It took a bit of time for some neighbours to warm up to initiatives but we worked with those who were willing and today we are talking of systems that are advancing in terms of security and general community management. We now have a team of 20 well equipped security personnel including a cycling unit and despite the challenges adjacent neighbourhoods are facing with crime, ours has only had one incident in the four years this initiative has been in force. Now we are planning on upscaling to smart security and other systems that will make our neighbourhood the safest and impenetrable,” said Mr Mutyasira.
The BRRA leader said it was possible to have a crime free Ward 18 and encouraged all neighbourhoods within the ward to come out of their cocoons and take bold steps towards creating their dream habitations and environments.
