A Sudanese man who works closely with troubled youths says there is a real problem with African gangs in Melbourne.
Nelly Yoa, a professional athlete who trialled for leading English soccer teams before becoming a youth worker, has slammed claims gangs are not running rampant.
Mr Yoa, who was himself the victim of a violent machete attack in 2011, has hit out at politicians and police in an aggressive opinion piece for The Age on Tuesday.
Following a spate of gang violence across Melbourne’s west in recent weeks, Mr Yoa says it’s time to admit there is ‘an issue with Sudanese gangs’ but that it can be fixed.
Nelly Yoa (pictured), a professional athlete who trialled for leading English soccer teams before becoming a youth worker, has slammed claims gangs are not a problem in Melbourne
In an aggressive opinion piece he said claims by politicians that the Apex gang and Menace to Society did not exist had left him ‘furious’ (Pictured is damage caused by gangs in Melbourne)
After being tormented by the Apex gang for a number of years, the city has in recent times also faced the rise of the so-called ‘Menace to Society’ gang.
Mr Yoa, who currently plays for Collingwood in the Victorian Football League, said he was left ‘furious and in disbelief’ after authorities said Sudanese gangs didn’t exist.
‘Nobody should ever try and cover up or defend this unacceptable behaviour – to do so is immoral and inexplicable,’ he wrote.
‘It is a fact that South Sudanese are over represented in crime statistics and are causing great harm and fear across communities in Melbourne.’
He himself has been on the end of gang violence, being hacked with a machete as a brawl broke out at a Sudanese beauty pageant in 2011.
With injuries so severe he was confined to a wheelchair, the incident cost Mr Yoa his professional contract with Melbourne Victory.
‘Nobody should ever try and cover up or defend this unacceptable behaviour – to do so is immoral and inexplicable,’ Mr Yoa said
Having fled war-torn South Sudan in 2003 for a better life, Mr Yoa said the actions of these gangs made him ‘ashamed’ to call himself Sudanese
A community centre at Tarneit (pictured) in western Melbourne has become a haven for gang violence and vandalism
Having fled war-torn South Sudan in 2003 for a better life, Mr Yoa said the actions of these gangs made him ‘ashamed’ to call himself Sudanese.
‘Melburnians are sick and tired of excuses. We’ve got to make sure people are held accountable,’ he said.
Mr Yoa’s opinion comes after Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull blamed the Victorian premier Daniel Andrews for the African gangs running rampant across the city.
Mr Turnbull blamed the Andrews’ government for the Apex and Menace to Society gangs terrorising residents in Melbourne’s west following a spate of thuggery.
It comes after a number of Airbnb properties at Werribee, in western Melbourne, were ruined by gangs of African youths over the past fortnight
The smashed car windows and caused massive damage to properties, actions Mr Yoa said made him feel ‘ashamed’
‘We are very concerned at the growing gang violence and lawlessness in Victoria, in particular in Melbourne,’ he told reporters at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on Monday.
‘This is a failure of the Andrews Labor government.’
The Andrews Governement last year introduced strict laws allowing them to deport troublemakers back to their homelands.