Pretoria - The country’s men and women in blue have been honoured for their bravery, hard work, dedication in the fight against crime and commitment to serving all communities in South Africa.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) hosted the Annual National Police Day event and the National Excellence Awards in the North West on Friday.
The day was set aside to pay tribute to police officers who made the ultimate sacrifice by giving their lives in the execution of their duties.
Celebrations saw the police’s top management and personnel interacting with the community of Ikageng Village in Boitekong, near Rustenburg.
“The police donated school uniforms to needy learners of Lerulhware Primary School, food parcels to the community and handed over a house to an eighty-year-old woman, Ms Johanna Kolobe, as part of the SAPS’s social crime prevention programme which addresses the root causes of crime,” SAPS spokesperson Brigadier Sally de Beer said on Monday.
The elderly lady, De Beer said, who is staying with her four minor grandchildren in a shack, survives on the pension she receives.
The celebrations were followed by the fourth annual National Excellence Awards, which were held at the Superbowl at Sun City, in recognition and honour of the extraordinary efforts of employees of the SAPS.
De Beer said: “These are the men and women who stood out as being truly dedicated to their calling and who excelled in the execution of their duties, their commitment to uplift needy communities and who performed acts of exceptional bravery”.
During the National Police day celebrations and the National Excellence Awards ceremony, tribute was paid to SAPS colleagues who made the ultimate sacrifice by giving their lives in the execution of their duties.
The Acting National Commissioner Lieutenant General Khomotso Phahlane congratulated all provincial nominees and winners, as well as all national nominees, finalists and winners present.
He said their presence is an indication of the organisation’s sincere appreciation for their outstanding efforts.
"We must continue to be visible, to react to and investigate each crime with vigour, our intelligence must lead us in crime prevention and detection and we must tackle criminals and crime trends robustly, yet strictly within the confines of the law,” General Phahlane motivated the winners.
The 27th of January was declared by Cabinet as National Police Day as a day to celebrate and honour members of the SAPS for their hard work. - SAnews.gov.za
