TOWNSHIP residents are on a collision course with charismatic churches over loud music and singing during services.
Congregants play musicalinstruments and loud hailers during services that are held several times a week.
Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni metro police departments said they had received complaints from residents about the noise.
Ekurhuleni metro police department (EMPD) spokesman Superintendent Wilfred Kgasago said they had already issued warnings to several churches.
"In instances where we found that the problem persisted, we would call the department of environmental health to measure the noise levels and advise the churches to comply," he said.
The Unity Fellowship Church, under the leadership of Pastor Mpfariseni Mukhuba in Tshiawelo, Soweto, was on Sunday served with a final warning for allegedly making noise by the Johannesburg metropolitan police department (JMPD).
This was after fed-up residents lodged a complaint with the JMPD.
The church is situated about five metres away from houses .
They hold services four times a week, host all-night prayer services once a month and weddings at the weekend.
Residents said they are fed-up and want the church to go.
"We do not have peace of mind, we are not happy. There was peace before they arrived here. They have tormented us with their noise for a solid five years. We will be so happy if they could be evicted," said a resident.
Residents claimed they sent petitions asking for the church to be moved. "We submitted a petition to the City of Johannesburg, but no one is acting on it.
"The noise is unbearable. It is part of our daily life. We get a rude awakening by the noise in the morning and when we go to sleep."
Another resident said the church opened all their windows and doors while residents were forced to close everything to minimise the noise.
"The worst part is that our bedrooms are right next to the church," said a resident, who added that the frustration was now forcing them to lay several complaints.
"We are employed and work shifts, but we cannot sleep during the day or night. The owners do not live here, they live in the suburbs where there is 24-hour tranquility. We are forced to attend the services from our homes. This church is a pain in the neck for us."
The residents did not want to be named because they feared they would be called devils.
Mukhuba's husband Theophilus, who is a co-director of the church, blamed the council for approving church building plans close to houses. He said they bought the stands in an industrial zone and the council should have made a buffer between the church and the houses.
"We have since been harassed by police. They literally stay here during services claiming we are making noise.
"The council should have refused our plans to build this building so close to the houses. Now we are paying for their mistakes."
ratsatsip@sowetan.co.za
Residents in a pickle over loud music, singing
TOWNSHIP residents are on a collision course with charismatic churches over loud music and singing during services.
Congregants play musicalinstruments and loud hailers during services that are held several times a week.
Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni metro police departments said they had received complaints from residents about the noise.
Ekurhuleni metro police department (EMPD) spokesman Superintendent Wilfred Kgasago said they had already issued warnings to several churches.
"In instances where we found that the problem persisted, we would call the department of environmental health to measure the noise levels and advise the churches to comply," he said.
The Unity Fellowship Church, under the leadership of Pastor Mpfariseni Mukhuba in Tshiawelo, Soweto, was on Sunday served with a final warning for allegedly making noise by the Johannesburg metropolitan police department (JMPD).
This was after fed-up residents lodged a complaint with the JMPD.
The church is situated about five metres away from houses .
They hold services four times a week, host all-night prayer services once a month and weddings at the weekend.
Residents said they are fed-up and want the church to go.
"We do not have peace of mind, we are not happy. There was peace before they arrived here. They have tormented us with their noise for a solid five years. We will be so happy if they could be evicted," said a resident.
Residents claimed they sent petitions asking for the church to be moved. "We submitted a petition to the City of Johannesburg, but no one is acting on it.
"The noise is unbearable. It is part of our daily life. We get a rude awakening by the noise in the morning and when we go to sleep."
Another resident said the church opened all their windows and doors while residents were forced to close everything to minimise the noise.
"The worst part is that our bedrooms are right next to the church," said a resident, who added that the frustration was now forcing them to lay several complaints.
"We are employed and work shifts, but we cannot sleep during the day or night. The owners do not live here, they live in the suburbs where there is 24-hour tranquility. We are forced to attend the services from our homes. This church is a pain in the neck for us."
The residents did not want to be named because they feared they would be called devils.
Mukhuba's husband Theophilus, who is a co-director of the church, blamed the council for approving church building plans close to houses. He said they bought the stands in an industrial zone and the council should have made a buffer between the church and the houses.
"We have since been harassed by police. They literally stay here during services claiming we are making noise.
"The council should have refused our plans to build this building so close to the houses. Now we are paying for their mistakes."
ratsatsip@sowetan.co.za
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