“It’s alive in Borger!” said VVD member Arne Joling in the city council last night. And that is noticeable. Recently it has been restless in the center of Borger. Abuse, fireworks nuisance and daubing ensure an unsafe feeling. Mayor Jan Seton announces that the municipality is taking extra steps to tackle this.
Two recent abuse at the bus stops along the N34 clearly visited the problems. The victims? One person walked up a concussion and bruises, another had a broken nose. This was probably the same perpetrator. “There are of course two assaults two too many,” Seton emphasized.
There is already extra supervision of police and boas. “It’s not enough,” the mayor acknowledged. “We want to prevent this from becoming a pattern.”
The big question: who are these young people and where do they come from? Annemiek de Groot from Leefbaar Borger-Odoorn wondered whether it is only about young people from Borger. “It is known that the group also contains young people from surrounding villages,” Seton replied. “So it’s not just the youth from Borger.”
The police do not think that there is a greater trend of violence in the village. It is clear that a few young people always go over the written. “More and more reports are coming in, people feel mainly at the public transport point unheimic.”
The municipality opts for a broader approach. In conversation with youth groups, schools and village interests, it must become clear what exactly is going on and how this behavior can be damaged. “We intensify the contact through youth workers and the local police officer,” said Seton. “We want more insight into what happens there.”
The intention is to talk to the young people who cause nuisance and find out why they ‘kick that’ noise ‘.
Peter Krans (CDA) reminded the Council that seven years ago there was a plea for cameras and extra supervision at the public transport point. Now that things go wrong, the question is why no action has been taken before. According to Seton, there has been little going on in recent years, but the nuisance is now flaring up again. “If we manage to talk to these young people and understand their reasons, we can work on a solution,” he said.
GroenLinks councilor Pieter de Groot asked whether neighboring municipalities are also involved in the approach. Seton confirmed that, among other things, AA and Hunze are aware and that there is a wider look than just Borger. “As a municipality, we will not solve this on our own.”