The Benoni CPF community meeting took place at the East Rand Speedboat Club on the evening of August 15.
Among those in attendance were Benoni SAPS station commander Brig Ntakuseni Lukhwareni, Chief Supt of the Benoni EMPD Lucky Mbhele and chairperson of the Benoni CPF as well as the Ekurhuleni Central Cluster CPF and PRO of the Gauteng Provincial Community Police Board (GPCPB), Reza Patel.
Brig Ntakuseni Lukhwareni briefed the community and CPF members on the crime statistics in certain areas.
Contact crimes such as assault, robbery, malicious damage to property, house and business robberies and car-jackings, were among the crimes flagged and discussed.
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Some of the statistics discussed were:
• Areas affected by assault include Cranbourne Avenue, Tom Jones Street, Prince’s Avenue, Harpur Avenue, Voortrekker Street and Howard Avenue.
• Areas affected by car-jackings include Atlas Road, Golden Drive, Elston Avenue, Main Reef Road, the N12 and Lakefield.
• Areas affected by business robberies include Tom Jones Street, Rothsay Street and Voortrekker Street with cellphone stores and businesses owned by foreign nationals targeted the most.
• Areas affected by house robberies include Lakefield, Farrarmere, Brentwood Park and Benoni AH. He said robberies often occurred in the early hours of the morning.
• N12, Snake Road and CBD armed robberies and smash and grab incidents with firearms and knives with suspects using the Benoni Plaza as a hideout.
• Kingsway and Lindelani showing statistics of domestic violence
Lukhwareni said the SAPS and the community must work together.
“Do not say ‘we pay tax’ as we all pay tax and it is important we work together according to the mandate of the constitution.
“The community does help the police in addressing crime, and we will address crime immediately and tackle it head on.
“Instead of pointing fingers, we would much rather engage with community members and make them also realise there is a difference between police staff available and the actual policing ratio.
“If we don’t deal with the root cause, and only the symptoms, then it is unlikely we will be able to deal with the problem head on.
“SAPS should be the last means of social control, and try to get organisations that deal with social ills more involved as in this way we will have an effective system in place, and less SAPS members are needed for these matters.”
He added that community members should be made to feel safe in their homes.
“I have an open-door approach and the public can call me regarding crime.
“I have a zero-tolerance for corruption, and ask that such matters be reported to me directly and I will address the matter immediately.”
Lukhwareni also implored community members to act responsibly around crime scenes, and not share information from scenes as this can have a direct consequence on the outcome of the case.
EMPD Chief Supt Lucky Mbhele said in the last two months, EMPD officers have made concerted efforts in Benoni and Actonville, to mount crime operations.
He said issues they tackled included impounding taxis and other vehicles parked illegally and enforcing by-laws on illegal traders. They also addressed issues that involve vagrants.
“We have 16 vehicles in Benoni, and one vehicle remains on patrol duty during the night shift,” said Mbhele.
CPF chairperson Patel maintained that the CPF is the only statutory body in the country with equal status with the SAPS and the metro police. However, the enforcement of the laws is done by the SAPS and EMPD.
“The CPF is a representative of SAPS and the community,” said Patel.
“The CPF is not paid for their work.
“These are ordinary citizens who give their time, energy, resources and efforts for free.
“We will not shoot at perpetrators as this can only be done by law enforcement bodies(SAPS and EMPD).
“CPF members do not work for anyone, and should be respected for the efforts they put in making communities to enjoy safer place.”
He added that CPF sustains itself from from its own funding and public donations, and that volunteers are welcome.
For more information on the Benoni CPF contact Marinda Beukes on 082 920 1548.
