Hundreds protest at condition of first minister's constituency
Protesters have marched on the first minister’s constituency office in protest at Govanhill’s decline.
They handed Nicola Sturgeon a petition demanding action on a number of social issues including crime, rubbish dumping, rat infestations and general upkeep.
Labour-led Glasgow City Council is under fire for not doing enough to regenerate the area.
Sturgeon came out to greet the protesters and receive the petition.
She said: "Govanhill has well documented challenges and my job as the local MSP is to solve those challenges.
"There is a lot of investment going into housing, into cleansing, into community safety but there is work still to do.
They (Glasgow City Council) have failed the people of Govanhill
“Today's march and petition will help make sure that we drive that progress further forward even faster."
Fiona Jordan, one of the event's organisers, said: "The reason for the petition and the march is essentially as a vote of no confidence in Glasgow City Council to keep us safe and for the people of Govanhill to live in a safe, clean environment.
"In 2008 the politicians came to Govanhill and they promised us they would deal with poor housing and the levels of crime. They have failed the people of Govanhill."
Men, women, and children chanted "let's save Govanhill" as they marched through the streets.
Mark McBride, 39, a resident and protester, said: "People are complaining about bed bugs, cockroaches, rats and the levels of crime. It was in my close that a girl was raped, and then a couple of weeks later there was another rape right across the road.
"The council need to stop cutting all the services for this area, and they need to start listening to our concerns. With the petition and the march hopefully the powers that be will do something about this."
Joseph Lily, 53, a protester who has lived in Govanhill his entire life, said: "We are frightened to walk out at night.
"I got mugged last year and thrown to the ground. I had my head split open and £30 stolen from me. This used to be a high amenity area and now we are prisoners in our homes."
