By Bhekisisa Mncube
Pietermaritzburg - Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa has ordered senior police officers in Maqongqo to improve their relationship with the local community in order to strengthen the fight against crime.
Mthethwa was in Maqongqo, on the outskirts of Pietermaritzburg, on Tuesday as part of government’s Imbizo Focus Week, which is aimed at touching base with communities across the length and breadth of the country. The Imbizo was held at Embhoyi Sports Grounds.
The minister sat pensively for two hours as speaker after speaker complained bitterly about the service rendered by the Bishopstowe police station and its station commissioner.
Key to the people’s complaints was the lethargy and ineptness in response to crimes and their investigations.
Skhumbuzo Maphumulo told the minister that he feared for his life. “I have been arrested on two separate occasions, but I have never seen a court of law,” Maphumulo said.
“Every time I am arrested, I am kept inside prison for four days and then released via the back door of the Magistrate’s Court. When I was arrested for the second time, the police set dogs on me,” he said.
He later showed SAnews the bruises on his body allegedly caused by the police dogs.
He also produced letters written to the Office of the Minister. Apparently, the minister’s office only responded to one letter. Mthethwa took down the details of Maphumulo’s complaint, including case numbers, the names of police officers involved and letters written to his office. He promised stern action against all those implicated if they are found to have broken the law.
Other community members told the minister that the police station was too far from them and severely understaffed.
In his response, Mthethwa called all implicated senior police officers onto the stage to give them a chance to respond to the community’s complaints. The community made it clear they did not have a good working relationship with the police.
Among those who felt aggrieved by the service rendered by the local police was Jaffet Bhekizazi Madlala. The minister gave him a chance to explain the community’s disquiet with the station commissioner.
Madlala said: “Although I am senior leader in this area, this commissioner ignores me. He holds no meetings with the traditional leaders or the community. Please minister, make him work or leave this area.”
On the breakdown of relations with the community, Mthethwa ordered that the station commissioner and cluster commander sort out the problem by December 31.
“If these problems are not sorted out, we are not afraid to let senior officers go on indefinite leave and put in new young people who will deliver on the mandate to fight crime together with the communities,” he warned.
He then ordered the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General Mmamonnye Ngobeni to deploy extra police and begin a process of installing a satellite police station in the area.
All senior police officers (station commissioner, cluster commander and provincial commissioner) and community policing forum chairperson were ordered to recite their cell phone numbers to over 5 000 people present.
However, Mthethwa urged the community not to abuse the cell phone numbers.
The minister issued a stern warning to the criminals, who have been terrorising the Maqongqo community, saying “the party is over now”.
“I have instructed the police to ensure that they harden their approach in their fight against criminals because we do not negotiate with criminals.” – SAnews.gov.za
