Rastafarians against drugs

The Rastafarian Community of Nelson Mandela Bay, led by Rastafari Council Chairman Jerome Brown met with Executive Mayor Danny Jordaan and Council Speaker Maria Hermans to pledge their unconditional support towards the municipality initiatives to combat crime, drugs and gangsterism in the Northern Areas and Township communities.

The Council Chairman also appealed to the Executive Mayor to allocate land for a church to be constructed, serving as a central point for the Rastafarians to practice their faith.

He said the church facility will also be used to educate the youth about the dangers and consequences of drugs, crime and gansterism.

“We give thanks to the Executive Mayor for the opportunity that he has given us to meet him. Understanding his busy schedule, we appreciate that he met us and listened to our issues. We would also like to express our support to him. His commitment to fighting crime, gangsterism and other social ills is encouraging, we give thanks” said Brown.

The Municipality Directorate of Human Settlements has already been instructed to follow up on the request made by the Rastafarian community. The Directorate was also reviewing its processes of applications for church sites.

“We are very grateful to the Rastafarian community to come forward and say that they are here and that they would like to pledge their support for the leadership of the NMBM. This can only be an indication that we are moving towards the right direction. We call upon all other sectors of society to work with the municipality to improve the lives of those who are needy and underprivileged,” Council Speaker, Maria Hermans said.