Helen Zille, the Western Cape Premier and community safety MEC Dan Plato were given an earful when they visited the police base camp area. Frustrated residents of Lavender Hill, under siege by gangsters.
Zille and Plato were at the police base camp in Lavender Hill to view the progress made by the police so far. The police camp is one of four such initiatives, with the others based in Uitsig, Phillippi East and Tafelsig in Mitchells Plain.
Tha angry community members stood outside the police camp waiting for Zille and Plato, calling for the end of gang violence and drug dealing in the community, expressing their frustrations and mistrust in the police with regard to their failure to handle gang violence.
Community member, Roland Netta, approached Plato, asking for help to deal with gang violence, encouraging stronger police presence in schools. “We are not safe in this area, especially in schools, our children need more security,” said Netta.
Netta said his children are always afraid to go to school, “even now my children are at home”.
The community members said, “We need stronger police, not the one who stand and talk to each other whilst there are shootings.”
Western Cape Deputy Provincial Police Commissioner Major General Mpumelelo Manci and Deputy Cluster Commander of the Mitchell’s Plain Cluster, Brigadier Mmagauta Letsoalo toldZille and Plato how the police camps have helped in fighting and decreasing crime and gang shootings.
“In our camps, we have deployed eight members to cover the 24-hour deployment, so that they deal with immediate shootings while we busy mobilising more police,” said Manci.
Zille has called on both the provincial and national police commissioners, and police minister Bheki Cele, to ensure that these base camps become a permanent fixture and not just a temporary solution.
“Since the launch of the operation in May this year, 1 168 suspects in Muizenberg and Steenberg, which include various high flying criminals have been arrested,” said Zille.
“It is essential for the community to work with the police. All the information the police need for community safety lies within the community.
“The community knows where the guns are, they know where the perpetrators are unless everyone works together, It is impossible to stop criminality.”
The operation has been designed to enhance policing visibility and ensure a 24/7 police presence and involves the deployment of 257 Public Order Policing personnel from across the country.
Plato said he was pleased with the base camps, as police are now able to manage their deployments, ensure a rapid response while securing crime scenes.
He said this gives community members more confidence to come forward with information about criminal activity.
“The Public Service Commissioner has already revealed that the Western Cape has 128 understaffed police stations. By filling these posts within the six months period as recommended by the PSC, the police will ensure that our communities are better protected and the base camp system should form part of this approach,” said Plato.
The community became restless and began hurling insults at Plato and Zille, forcing the premier’s security detail to intervene. However, she resisted, wanting to stay and listen to the complaints of the community about safety and a lack of housing.