NEWS

HOWICK and Pakuranga residents are concerned about crime, policing, gangs, personal safety and graffiti, says Manukau City councillor Dick Quax.

At a public meeting on September 12, Pakuranga rep Mr Quax and Howick councillor Jami-Lee Ross addressed Grey Power members before NZ First leader Winston Peters took the spotlight.

In his role as Manukau City Council’s portfolio leader for community safety, Mr Quax said: “We are not well served by the police hierarchy.”

Citing figures from 2007, Mr Quax said there had been a 19.4 per cent increase in violent crime in Manukau, while the Counties Manukau region has one sworn police officer for every 620 residents. He stated the national average ratio is one officer to 550 members of the public.

A mumble vibrated through the Grey Power audience when Mr Quax further revealed that east Manukau’s ratio diminishes to one to 1500. He says the council’s role in community safety and crime reduction is lighting of public spaces, road management, playgrounds and removal of graffiti.

Contracted private investigators follow up tagging infringements because they’re seen as precursors to other criminality, says Mr Quax.

The council has been reviewing the need for more paid security guards to compensate for insufficient police numbers in Counties Manukau.

In response to heated comments from the floor calling for more action from local government, Mr Quax, a former ACT Party candidate, suggested that voters in the upcoming general election “change the darn government”.

Meanwhile, wastewater charges, another hot topic affecting superannuates, was tackled by Mr Ross.

A supporter of volumetric rates, Mr Ross said people living in one or two person households are subsidising high water users and fixed rates are not a fair way of charging.

Encouraging the audience to challenge the council’s decision to continue charging fixed wastewater rates, Mr Ross recommended that the seniors contact councillors to voice their disapproval.