Days after safety and liaison MEC Weziwe Tikana encouraged residents to help fight crime, Beacon Bay residents have formed their own crime-combating forum.
The Beacon Bay Sector Patrollers Forum was launched in East London on Thursday, and patrols in the suburb started that evening.
The forum is divided into four sectors – the Beacon Bay North, Beacon Bay South, Nompumelelo and Ducats Sector patrollers.
Patrols are coordinated within various areas each night.
Forum member Juan de Kock said the patrols were aimed at driving out housebreaking syndicates.
“We are going to make it very uncomfortable for criminal syndicates to operate in our area,” De Kock said, who claimed house-breaking incidents had peaked over the festive season.
The patrollers forum, however, has limited resources, said De Kock.
“We need help with cheap two-way radios and magnetic stickers for branding our vehicles,” he said.
This was confirmed by East London police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Mtati Tana, who said the sector patrollers were executing their patrols at their own cost.
“They also provide their own resources to assist with the patrols,” Tana said.
The state would assist each of the four groups by providing at least one police van, Tana said.
“The station commander of Beacon Bay, Colonel Thayne Petzer, hopes that criminals would now think twice before coming to the area to commit crime, as it is not only police vehicles patrolling but many sector patrol vehicles which are not known to criminals.”
Tana said this would be a lasting partnership between police and members of the community.
De Kock said the group was up to the challenge and encouraged members of the community to rally behind the patrollers.
“The fact of the matter is the Beacon Bay police station is extremely understaffed and I think this is a national problem“Cops get sick like you and I and don’t report for duty.
“When that happens, it is a big problem,” he said.
Tana also encouraged people to make sure their homes were not easy targets, by locking gates, doors and windows at night.
Responding to Democratic Alliance calls for more police reservists to be hired, Tikana on Tuesday said it was the responsibility of citizens to fight crime in their communities.
“It is the responsibility of each and every citizen to fight crime because crime is happening in our communities,” the MEC said. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
Beacon Bay patrollers join cops to fight crime
The Beacon Bay Sector Patrollers Forum was launched in East London on Thursday, and patrols in the suburb started that evening.
The forum is divided into four sectors – the Beacon Bay North, Beacon Bay South, Nompumelelo and Ducats Sector patrollers.
Patrols are coordinated within various areas each night.
Forum member Juan de Kock said the patrols were aimed at driving out housebreaking syndicates.
“We are going to make it very uncomfortable for criminal syndicates to operate in our area,” De Kock said, who claimed house-breaking incidents had peaked over the festive season.
The patrollers forum, however, has limited resources, said De Kock.
“We need help with cheap two-way radios and magnetic stickers for branding our vehicles,” he said.
This was confirmed by East London police spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Mtati Tana, who said the sector patrollers were executing their patrols at their own cost.
“They also provide their own resources to assist with the patrols,” Tana said.
The state would assist each of the four groups by providing at least one police van, Tana said.
“The station commander of Beacon Bay, Colonel Thayne Petzer, hopes that criminals would now think twice before coming to the area to commit crime, as it is not only police vehicles patrolling but many sector patrol vehicles which are not known to criminals.”
Tana said this would be a lasting partnership between police and members of the community.
De Kock said the group was up to the challenge and encouraged members of the community to rally behind the patrollers.
“The fact of the matter is the Beacon Bay police station is extremely understaffed and I think this is a national problem“Cops get sick like you and I and don’t report for duty.
“When that happens, it is a big problem,” he said.
Tana also encouraged people to make sure their homes were not easy targets, by locking gates, doors and windows at night.
Responding to Democratic Alliance calls for more police reservists to be hired, Tikana on Tuesday said it was the responsibility of citizens to fight crime in their communities.
“It is the responsibility of each and every citizen to fight crime because crime is happening in our communities,” the MEC said. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
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