Fellow Comrades
Every South African must be a whistle blower to combat crime!
It was interesting to have read an article written in Mail & Guardian titled
Community Policing needs a real, hard” penciled by Gleen Hollands and Len
Khalane, in which it provokes a view that we have perhaps relegated the
importance of community policing forums.
After the Polokwane, key amongst the resolutions to create a crime free South
Africa was to consolidate the Community Safety Forums and further realize the
establishment of street committees as centres of peoples’ struggle to eradicate
any forms of criminality in general and violent crimes in general that was sky
rocketing in the recent SAPS Crime Statistics.
Whilst we welcome the increased police personnel, before and during the FIFA
2010 World Cup, it will be imprudent not to sustain the police visibility in
all our hamlets, farms, village, township, malls, cities and suburbs.
The scribers articulated a key matter that occupies the public discourse by
saying “never mind that policy-makers had sound historical and political
reasons for demilitarizing police ranking systems just a few years ago”, we
cannot agree that the recent militarization is a be all and end all to many
structural challenges within the police service. It’s our contention as POPCRU
that militarization will undermine the human rights of our citizenry because
under apartheid-the notorious command and control has undermined the rule of
law, many communists, trade unionist and activists were
beaten,jailed,removed,and made to suffer in their own country on a basis of
ideological differences.
Many will recall the era of popular language amongst the Police Squad around
“one step, one bullet” that has compromised many comrades-many unmarked graves
is a testimony to that ugly state of policing during that era. And we should
not go back to it!
It is a considered view that, whilst we believe that we are a free country,
transformation of the police service should be prioritized than using military
ranks to scare our own people.
Police oversight can only be enhanced through an effective and efficient system
of community policing forums that is borne out an inculculate of a culture of
more community consciousness to become whistle blowers of any form of unethical
and unbecoming behaviour that seeks to undermine the peace and tranquility in
the country.
It is correct to agree with the scribers that we cannot allow the alleged
“entrepreneurial cops” to be kept within the service as they undermine the
integrity and the honour of the police badge by selling dockets and that
compromise the rule of law and justice for all to prevail.
The only route to take will be to enhance “community partnerships, effective
use of intelligence and improved laws and policies” as the scribers suggest and
that resides on the maximum involvement of the citizenry to shape the policy
propositions is what is a source of concern with the current imposition of
militarization. No public hearings were convened to test the feeling and the
aspirations of the people.
What we must admit is that many Community Policing Forums were made to die
natural death because of improper plans to sustain them through training,
provision of necessary equipments and the greater extent survives on the mercy
of station commanders and disregarding a fact that they are regulated by law.
In certain instances, many of our volunteers are left without transport and
food because they do not draw a salary and that leave the majority disappointed
at the treatment. Perhaps consider provision of stipends to enable work to
continue. We must correct that!
The President of the ANC and the country said at the SACP Special Congress in
Polokwane in 2009 that “We also told the electorate that our fight against
crime will be a key priority, to ensure safer and more secure communities”. And
strengthening the community police (safety) forums must be a vocation that all
of us should and must be preoccupied with.
Social cohesion starts with building a safe South Africa!
Issued by:
Norman Mampane
National Spokesperson
Tel: 0112424600/4615
Cell: 0720737959
Fax: 0866253054
Email: [email protected]
01 Marie Road
Auckland Park
2006
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