KNYSNA NEWS - A recent crime overview meeting between police and the communities of policing sector 3 started with sparks flying as the community immediately made no secret of their dissatisfaction with the SAPS’ “uncaring attitude", among other complaints.
Sector 3 consists of Khayalethu, Bongani, Nekkies, Dam-se-Bos-Hlalani, Oupad and Concordia.
Attending the meeting on September 14 was Knysna public prosecutor Phumlani Gqalangile, police station commander Colonel Atwell Metu, Lieutenant Colonel Patric Gogwana, Lieutenant Colonel Noxolo Sijaji, CPF chairperson Cheryl Britz, and councillors Mandla Matiwane and Mncedisi Skhosana.
Statistics for the meeting were presented by Gogwana and although they show a decrease in crime in comparison to last year, it showed that Nekkies, part of sector 3, is now a hot spot for criminal activities.
The first issue raised at the gathering at Chris Hani community hall in Dam-se-Bos was that of language, with people asking why the officials were speaking English instead of isiXhosa when addressing matters that concerned their community.
'Insufficient notice'
They also felt that they did not get adequate notice of such an important forum. As one resident said, clearly livid, “This meeting is a complete failure and it is poorly attended because you didn’t use loud-hailers to announce the meeting and you didn’t arrange transport.”
Another said, “Why have you decided to come to us now? Is it because one of your own has now suffered from crime because we all know you don’t care about us. I have lost faith in the justice system and have reached a point in my life where I feel comfortable leaving my clothes on my line and if someone dares steal them I will deal with him and if someone stabs me I won’t call the police, I will stab them back.”
Some of the officials at the Chris Hani hall in Dam-se-Bos were (from left) Noxolo Ntsiba-Sijaji, Knysna public prosecutor Phumlani Gqalangile, councillor Mncendisi Skhosana, police station commander Colonel Atwell Metu, CPF chairperson Cheryl Britz and Joseph Kobi.
Trying to calm the angry resident, who spoke on behalf of the community, Gqalangile tried to explain how the law works, but he was told to sit down by a community member and wait for questions directed to him.
A common complaint expressed was the police response time and the release of perpetrators of crime.
Another Nekkies resident made reference to a recent incident, saying, “A man in the area was stabbed, we found the perpetrator and called the police and they arrived much later. He was arrested and shortly released only for him to stab another person to death. Now what must we do?”
Procedure explained
Gqalangile explained why the man was released. “When we are dealing with bail applications, we are guided by the crime procedure which is like a bible in court, for instance if he is a first-time offender, not a flight risk, he is most likely to be released on bail, but with conditions. If he commits crime again, then he won’t get bail.”
Gqalangile urged the community to refrain from taking the law into their hands.
Metu also explained why the response time for police is longer than expected, saying “we have three police vehicles per shift”.
Another resident said, “In a meeting a while ago there were talks about a possibility of building a police station in the area of our community which I think would help eradicate crime. If not, at least help make your response time quicker.”
To this, Gogwana replied that he agreed it would make a difference, but that local police hands are tied as this kind of decision depends on national governance.
Another resident asked whether the officials thought Sergeant Juliet Ndlovu, who is in charge of the sector, is fit for the job, to which the police response was that the "Knysna police say that the said sergeant is fit and doing remarkable work and, unfortunately, the public do not get to choose their sector commander”.
The last question from the floor was, “Until when must we suffer?”
“Thank you so much for bringing forward all your grievances. Going forward more meetings of this nature are needed, which is the first step towards fixing the problems,” Metu said. Gogwana also encouraged residents to bring their problems to the station, where they would be dealt with.
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