Helen Zille, the former Mayor of Cape Town and now the DA’s Federal Council Chair, has acknowledged concerns from a local resident about the increase in illegal drag racing. This comes a week after Nigerian rapper 3GAR Baby – real name Prince Daniel Obioma – crashed his McLaren in Sea Point.
Obioma was behind the wheel of the R7 million supercar, which was caught on camera speeding down High-Level Road.
Just weeks before, a Ferrari lost control in Buitengracht Street, killing an innocent pedestrian.
HELEN ZILLE REACTS TO SPEEDING SUPERCARS IN CAPE TOWN
According to the Cape Argus, Helen Zille acknowledged the public’s concerns following the McLaren crash last weekend.
Her response was addressed to Cape Town resident Grant Richardson, who approached the city to clamp down on drag racing along the Atlantic Seaboard strip, which had resulted in many accidents. Over the last decade, Richardson had written several letters to authorities, attaching photographs and videos of the vehicles as proof.
In her response, Zille noted the interventions of law enforcement and City traffic officials to curb the illegal practice. She wrote in an email: “I have gone into the matter, and I understand that there have been several interventions by the City Traffic Control team, including dedicated interventions on Sunday every night when many problems occur.”
Images via Instagram: @3gar_baby/ Atlantic Seaboard Community Forum
Zille also acknowledged that the resident had been contacted by the City’s Safety and Security’s Mayco Member, JP Smith, and ward councillor Nicola Jowell in an effort to find solutions to uphold the by-laws.
According to the City of Cape Town, residents are advised to report incidents of drag racing to traffic officials on their emergency portal.
3GAR BABY DELETES POST ABOUT MCLAREN CRASH
Meanwhile, Nigeria rapper 3GAR Baby has deleted an Instagram post dismissing his R7 million McLaren 570S Coupe crash as reckless driving.
According to the Atlantic Seaboard Community Forum, the supercar was captured driving 200km/h in CCTV footage on Saturday, 1 March.
The muso – behind the wheel – and his brother, a passenger, were injured in the crash. In an Instagram post after the crash, 3Gar dismissed claims that his driving was negligent or reckless. He also claimed that the video was edited.
Responding to a critic under an Instagram post, he shared: “Bro, the video was cut. That’s not what really happened. I was actually avoiding hitting a beggar before I lost control and hit the pavement and still avoided hitting the car in front of me.”
Image via Instagram: @3gar_baby
He added: “That wasn’t my initial speed; avoidance of taking a life led to the wrong turn.”
In an IG Story, he posted of the crash: “Nah, small thing remain. Could’ve been all over! I can’t stop thanking God for life”.
3GAR hails from the Rivers State in Nigeria but now lives in Cape Town.
Police spokesperson Wesley Twigg told The Citizen of the McLaren crash: “The circumstances surrounding the incident are under investigation. We can confirm that two males were taken to a medical facility for treatment”.
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