The new Yeoville Police Station was opened by the Minister of Police, Nathi Nhleko, on Wednesday.
The station’s spokesperson, Constable Thabo Malatji, said the effects of the new station have started to show.
“The moral of members is high. Arrests have increased and other services to our community have improved drastically, and this is because all the units are housed in one place. When one unit has a question for another unit, they just walk to their offices and talk. That has improved the arrest and conviction rates,” he said.
He said the previous premises was small and could not house all the units.
“Other units, like the detectives unit, were housed outside. That affected the workflow. Now our Client Services Centre is big enough and more officers can help the community at the same time without interfering with each other. Physically challenged people are also catered for in the new station,” said Const Malatji.
He praised the community for working with the police to fight crime.
“We have solved lots of crime in our area because of the help of our community. We are grateful for that. This is one of the important segments of crime fighting,” he said.
He said police officers were called on to adhere to the basics of the law when fighting crime.
“We need to respect the partnership between the police and community in the fight against crime. The community has to take an active stand against crime. Do not do crime, report crime, report criminals and report criminal activity,” he said.
Const Malatji urged the community to use Sector numbers to report crime in order to get better services.
“The 08600 10111 is the central number. Your call will be rerouted to the station, then to the sector. To call the station is good, but it is better to contact the relevant Sector vehicle as they patrol the areas,” he said.
The sector numbers are Sector 1 (Yeoville) 071 675 6028; Sector 2 (Bellevue and Bellevue East) 071 675 6037; Sector 3 (Observatory) 071 675 6030.
