East London police, along with a number of school principals, have urged parents with high school children to keep their children in check.
“Inappropriate” behaviour including public indecency and public drinking by pupils in Devereux Avenue in Vincent has been at the root of an increasing number of complaints to police.
Nine principals of former Model C schools have issued a joint statement describing how pupils gather in large numbers after events like weekend derby games to engage in such behaviour.
The schools affected include Cambridge High, Hudson Park, Beaconhurst, Clarendon, Stirling, Hoërskool Grens, Selborne, Port Rex and Baysville.
Police spokesman Captain Mluleki Mbi yesterday told the Dispatch that in the past two years, police had received countless complaints from members of the public and business owners in the vicinity about pupils getting drunk on the streets, behaving indecently and causing havoc.
“We have received so many complaints that I am unable to count. As the police there is not much we can do, other than disperse the crowd. In instances where safety is compromised, we try and get hold of the parents,” said Mbi.
The principals say they have noted the “disquieting trend” amongst pupils, some as young as 12, who would gather in large numbers to socialise on most Saturdays.
“According to the police, alcohol is always involved, inappropriate public displays of intimacy have also been reported on such occasions and possibly other illegal activities,” says the statement.
Managers at two businesses in Vincent – a fast food outlet and a petrol station – told the Dispatch that the crowd sometimes becomes so rowdy that they have to get extra security.
The managers said sometimes they even close their establishments for the day or until the crowd had dispersed.
A taxi operator along Devereux Avenue, Luzuko Magwenya, said what was reported to the police was just half of the “bad things” the pupils get up to, and it had been happening for far longer than two years. “I have seen worse – I have actually seen some of them engaging in sexual activities. This trend is not new, it’s been going on for well over five years,” said Magwenya.
The principals stated that they were not responsible for the pupils when they were not on school premises, and were not able to monitor how the pupils behave over the weekend after the games.
They appealed to parents to become more aware of their children’s location, activities and friends.
Mbi also said parental involvement was the necessary solution. “Parents need to know where their children are at all times. If there are games they must know when the games end so they can fetch them on time,” said Mbi.
Pupils’ behaviour irks principals, cops
“Inappropriate” behaviour including public indecency and public drinking by pupils in Devereux Avenue in Vincent has been at the root of an increasing number of complaints to police.
Nine principals of former Model C schools have issued a joint statement describing how pupils gather in large numbers after events like weekend derby games to engage in such behaviour.
The schools affected include Cambridge High, Hudson Park, Beaconhurst, Clarendon, Stirling, Hoërskool Grens, Selborne, Port Rex and Baysville.
Police spokesman Captain Mluleki Mbi yesterday told the Dispatch that in the past two years, police had received countless complaints from members of the public and business owners in the vicinity about pupils getting drunk on the streets, behaving indecently and causing havoc.
“We have received so many complaints that I am unable to count. As the police there is not much we can do, other than disperse the crowd. In instances where safety is compromised, we try and get hold of the parents,” said Mbi.
The principals say they have noted the “disquieting trend” amongst pupils, some as young as 12, who would gather in large numbers to socialise on most Saturdays.
“According to the police, alcohol is always involved, inappropriate public displays of intimacy have also been reported on such occasions and possibly other illegal activities,” says the statement.
Managers at two businesses in Vincent – a fast food outlet and a petrol station – told the Dispatch that the crowd sometimes becomes so rowdy that they have to get extra security.
The managers said sometimes they even close their establishments for the day or until the crowd had dispersed.
A taxi operator along Devereux Avenue, Luzuko Magwenya, said what was reported to the police was just half of the “bad things” the pupils get up to, and it had been happening for far longer than two years. “I have seen worse – I have actually seen some of them engaging in sexual activities. This trend is not new, it’s been going on for well over five years,” said Magwenya.
The principals stated that they were not responsible for the pupils when they were not on school premises, and were not able to monitor how the pupils behave over the weekend after the games.
They appealed to parents to become more aware of their children’s location, activities and friends.
Mbi also said parental involvement was the necessary solution. “Parents need to know where their children are at all times. If there are games they must know when the games end so they can fetch them on time,” said Mbi.
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