Yeoville, Gauteng
The Premier of Gauteng, David Makhura
MEC for Community Safety, Mme Sizakele Nkosi
The Executive Mayor Councillor Tau
Acting National Commissioner Lt General K Phahlane and your management team
Provincial Commissioner, General Mothiba
CPF Provincial board Chairperson Mr Mashile
Community leaders
Councillors
Traditional leaders
Ladies and gentleman
Thank you for the opportunity to address you today on the occasion of the opening of this police station here in the vibrant community of Yeoville and surrounds.
Perhaps in academic circles it is frowned upon for one to quote himself but in this case, please make an exception. At the opening last year of Tembisa police station, this is what the Minister of Police said:
For a long time, police stations were a symbol of our oppression and fearsome places for political activists. Many a life was lost in police stations across the country. These edifices assumed a grotesque symbol of oppression and the expression of that oppression for many of our people.
But with the change in our circumstance – the move away from the oppressive regime to a democratic dispensation, police stations should be symbols of hope. A police station should be a symbol of safety, of community involvement and a point for the betterment of a community.
It is said that that “just the presence of a police station can make a community or neighborhood safer, regardless of what's inside it”. A day is coming where our police will have in their possession all tools of trade - a laptop computer, cell phone and cameras for collecting evidence. In theory this would mean that a modern-day policeman or woman could do their jobs in their cars.
However, the reality is there is still an important aspect of face-to-face communication with colleagues, criminals and the public that can only happen at a police station, which makes it a vital part of public safety.
These views have not changed. We launch this station a day after the release of the Victim of Crimes Survey by Statistics SA. It is noteworthy that this survey notes:
The proximity to the nearest police station to report crime occurrences was also a consideration when the public shared their perceptions of law enforcement in their areas of residence or areas where the crime took place. Most households (65,6%) travelled less than 30 minutes (when using their usual mode of transport) to the nearest police station. More than 60% of households were satisfied with the way in which police and courts were doing their work.
This view may have been influenced by factors such as the time it took for police to respond to a crime, visible policing, conviction rates, and sentencing of perpetrators. Households who were satisfied with the police in their area felt that the police come to the scene of the crime (78,0%) and were committed (73,7%).
More than 60% of households saw a police officer in uniform patrolling in the area at least once a day or once a week, while about 20,5% were likely to see the police patrolling at least once a month. Western Cape (80,4%) followed by Gauteng (80,3%) had the highest rate of police patrolling at least once a day or once a week.
Constructing a police station is a direct response to the need to have citizens that “are and feel safe” and this survey buttresses the earlier point. What this means is that we have to accelerate delivery of this infrastructure to as many people as possible because we have evidence that police stations add to the feelings of safety and they improve police visibility in the area therefore decrease some of the crimes that cause debilitating fear.
The survey shows “more than six in every ten households perceived the most common crime to be housebreaking/burglary (61,6%), followed by home robbery (43,4%), street robbery (39,4%) and pick-pocketing or bag-snatching (24,7%). Housebreaking/burglary (59,7%) and home robbery (50,2%) were also perceived to be the most feared crimes, followed by street robbery (39,9), murder (36,5%) and sexual assault (30,5%).”
Our statistics show that in this area, these property-related crimes have gone down by 8%in total. However, crimes against persons which include murder, sexual offences and assault GBH have increased from the corresponding period which is a serious cause for concern.
What this means is that the station commander here must know all these statistics by heart and be clear how we will make a difference for the better. But this goes for all commanders in all stations. That is how we will win – precinct by precinct. Statistics also show that crimes detected as a result of police actions has decreased. That is not positive. It should increase because that means that we are not doing as much as we should be doing.
The Victims of Crimes Survey should also be prescribed reading for all officers on the beat so that they can get to know what people on the ground think of the service we are delivering. There are areas where we are doing better but there are also areas where we need to pull up our socks.
It cannot be that we can have a situation where people have to suspend their actions because they are afraid of crime. The survey shows that: “More than a third of the households (34,7%) were prevented from going to open spaces or parks when alone because of fear of crime.
The fear of crime prevented more than a quarter of households to allow their children to play in their area, while 17,5% of households could not allow their children to walk to school without being accompanied by an adult because of the fear of crime. Provincially, Northern Cape (50,2%), Gauteng (44,1%) and Western Cape (40,8%) had the highest percentage of people who were prevented from going to open spaces or parks because of fear of crime. “
The promise that we made to the people of this country is that we will ensure by all means possible that they are and feel safe. And the lessons from such a document are invaluable. For example, we know that that 63% of households believed that property and violent crimes were likely to be committed by people from the area.
It follows from then that it is highly possible that the local people would know whom the criminals in the area are and can possibly help police with information. But this must happen under conditions where people feel safe and comfortable in giving us this information.
This means that we need to forever improve our relations with the people on whose behalf we serve. This means we have to be on the ground all the time and everytime. This means that community policing forums and other bodies need to be partners and we need to take them seriously to be able to deal with this scourge of crime – especially when it begins to seriously deprive ordinary people of the enjoyment of life.
The solutions seem obvious. IN fact, ordinary people also have said it when and have answered that they believe will eventually solve their problems. Asked about what they thought the government should to combat crime, “64,1% of households were of the view that social and/or economic development was the more effective way of reducing crime. About twenty per cent of households indicated that resources should rather be focused on law enforcement, while an estimated 15,6% felt that resources should be allocated to the judiciary/courts in order to effectively reduce crime.”
This is their view. But it is the view that we have expressed in many forums that economic development and social development will provide the solution to our problems.
For now though, we need to work and ensure that everyone in our country is and feels safe. Street by Street. Station by station. Cluster by cluster.
Thank you.
