From Ghost on the Coast to ‘Shithole’ of South Africa.
It was with a sense of shame and foreboding that I watched Johannesburg resident Dr Ivor Blumenthal speak about a recent trip to ‘Port Elizabeth’ when he and a friend were mugged. Not very observant of you Ivor – we are now known as Gqeberha and have been for a number of years now.
His TikTok video below highlights the inadequacies of our SAPS and the economics of crime. He advises all to ‘steer clear of GQ’. Ivor says that it starts with the Car Guards who have ‘Yoco’ machines and threaten motorists.
According to Ivor the SAPS told him that the St. Georges Hospital was in an area more dangerous than the beachfront.
“Their (citizens of GQ) government has let them down,” says Ivor. And the ANC gets the blame for this sorry state of affairs.
This is not the first time he has been victim of crime in GQ – having had luggage stolen out of a hire car on the beachfront in 2021. Ivan’s Hot Tip: When hiring a car insist on local number plates that will not mark you as a tourist.
According to Ivor only three provinces in SA are safe for tourists.
Ivor’s cellphone was also stolen and he can track the device but nothing has been done by the SAPS to reclaim the phone.
Ivor says that he thinks Donald Trump was referring to Port Elizabeth when he said that South Africa was a ‘shithole’.
26 September Update: Surprise, surprise the video on TikTok has been taken down – the only thing remaining is the transcript above and notification below!
BUT – We downloaded the WhatsApp shared video and you can see it here: PE is a #Shithole
Some wag on Social Media:
Dr. Ivor Blumenthal’s travel diary just hit a new low—he’s dubbed Port Elizabeth a “shithole.” Guess he forgot his rose-colored glasses at home! But hey, beauty is in the eye of the beholder… or maybe just in the bathroom?
#TravelCritique #ShitholeDiaries #PortElizabeth #SarcasmIsAnArtForm
The Ward 2 Councillor, Sean Tappan also posted this on Old Testament (Facebook):
Good evening residents.
I thought it prudent to respond to a video that has recently been distributed by Dr Ivor Blumenthal detailing his terrible ordeal when he was attacked and robbed on the beachfront area near happy valley bridge. In no way do I want to deminish what happened however I do feel it important to also let you know what is happening in the background to try and improve the situation.
What we need to take into account is that tourism is the second biggest income generator for the city which employs 1000s of staff who operate tour groups , bnbs , restaurants, hotels and supportive services. It is therefore very important that we protect this industry and the visitors who visit our beautiful city. The residents who live in the area and or families that visit the beachfront deserve to feel safe and protected.
Lets start on what’s been done.
The Neighbourhood watch in conjunction with the business chamber has invested over R600k worth of cameras along the beachfront and footage has led to arrests and convictions. Attacks at the sbend have reduced because of the cameras.
The neighbourhood watch/Community Police Forum through the business chamber drafted a letter to the Minister of Police insisting on a SAPS Beachfront Safety Unit like in Cape Town and Durban.
Due to this letter it brought about the Minister of police coming to Gqeberha on 2 different occasions to address crime.
Two Police imbizos were held with the public to hear complaints and grievances and I was present at both.The DA put pressure on the MEC to take action against crime where they hold him accountable in the Provincial legislature and he visited the city and I was also present.
Due to this pressure that has been placed on the Mayor’s office to take action the R8.5m MBDA CCTV camera installation was initiated.
15 tourism Ambassadors were appointed by tourism with uniforms to patrol the beachfront during the day.
The beachfront SAPS unit changed its times to patrol into the night vs day patrols only.
Additional SAPS resources arrived today at the Humewood police station and will be deployed on Monday into the area.
Provincial joint operations have taken place each weekend also covering the beachfront area inclusive of road blocks by saps/metro traffic of whichni took part.
Metro police services have allocated an additional vehicle dedicated to the beachfront and central.
The DA safety and security portfolio have put tremendous pressure on the MMC and Act ED hence the final contracts been awarded for shot spotter, the mobile surveillance unit and speed traps.
There are a number of other items like neighbourhood watch support policy, drone technology, advanced AI control rooms and additional staff and infrastructure that are on the agenda.
Further to this I sent a mail to Mr Ian Cameron who Heads the SAPS portfolio committee in parliament to engage with the Minister about the beachfront saps unit.
A meeting was held with the Tourism Business Council of South Africa and all role players re an action plan for safety and tourism.
Notices have been printed and posted in registered bnbs and hotels warning visitors of crime and card fraud in 5 different languages.
The tourism industry is considering offering tourists tuk tuk to and from hotels to protect their guests from crime.
In a nut shell we are trying to get additional boots on the ground from Saps being a national government component as well as Metro police by pushing for budget for staff and vehicles.
As we speak the neighbourhood watch is patrolling the hot areas and I will be joining them shortly.
I know the above sounds like a mouth full and how does that change things on the ground but this is how policy is made by putting enough pressure to create change.
Keep safe
Your Ward Councillor
Sean Tappan
@ivorblumenthal #portelizabethsouthafrica #qberga #crime #mugging #southafricatourism ? original sound – Dr Ivor Blumenthal
About Ivan Blumenthal:
Ivor Blumenthal graduated with degrees in Law and Psychology and Business from Wits University, RAU University and Wits Business School between 1981 and 1991.
He worked in the Human Resources Industry, the Banking Sector and the FMCG sector until being appointed as Chief Executive Officer of the Furniture Industries Training Board, in South Africa from 1991 until 1996.
He served as CEO of the Association of Personnel Service Organisations (APSO) from 1996 until 2000.
In 1998 he was appointed as Chairperson of the Services SETA and at the same time was also appointed as a member of the National Skills Authority, which is an advisory body to the Minister of Labour and was responsible for developing the Skills Development Act, the Skills Development Funding Act and the South African Qualifications Act.
He left APSO in January 2000 to become the first CEO of the Services SETA.
He grew the Services SETA to a R1 billion levy income organisation by April 2011.
During his time as head of the SSETA he shepherded in 48 Learnerships registered through the South African Qualifications Authority.
The Services SETA had contracted 45 000 learners into these qualifications on average a year by 2011.
He worked on various International Bodies representing the Services SETA and South Africa including Worldkills, the European Marketing Association, various Global Hairdressing and Beauty Associations, the Social Dialogues for Personnel Care at the European Union, the International Labour Organisation and was one of those instrumental in creating the International Professional Standards Network (IPSN).
He obtained his Doctorate – Phd. in Law, Innovation and Technology from Da Vinci University, in 2010.
In 2010 the newly appointed Minister of Higher Education and Training enacted legislation, which changed the governance and course of SETA’s and Dr Blumenthal, was at the forefront of six court cases to prevent the Minister from infringing the Constitution. Each of the six suits was awarded with costs to Dr Blumenthal. He resigned as CEO from the SSETA in April 2011.
Thereafter he established a Consulting Practice named ArkKonsult specializing in servicing Business Associations and Professional Bodies, and in-particular in establishing BBBEE Strategies for Private Sector Businesses.
He has written a book entitled “50 Shades of Greed – The Services SETA, Warts and All”.
In 1994 he became a City Councillor for Johannesburg serving as an Independent.
He also served as Vice Chairman of an Old Age Home and taught as a part-time lecturer in Marketing, Strategy and HR at the University of Johannesburg in Johannesburg for 10 years.
He is married to Robyn a Speech Therapist and they have three children, Natalia 22, Aylit 17 and Adiv 12.
Alan Straton
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