Police station faces challenges
There is a shortage of staff while crime increases, the rape and trauma centre has closed, and the holding cells were turned into a storage facility.
When Crystal Park resident Thelma Mashabela went outside to stretch after an afternoon nap on November 20, she was shocked to find her work car sitting on concrete blocks with all four wheels missing.
She said the criminals jumped over the wall and helped themselves to the wheels while she was inside her house with her child and nanny.
Mashabela said the brazen criminality in the area worried her, especially as she often has to leave home at night for work call-outs.
“I’m shattered. I’m scared for my life. It has made me fearful. There should be more patrols and surveillance. We also need a fence to secure this whole area. That will make things better,” she said.
While Mashabela commended the Crystal Park SAPS for their swift response and handling of her case, she was unaware of the dire situation at the station.
The station is severely understaffed, and its 90 officers have to rely on 19 vehicles (three are in for repairs) to fight crime, including illegal mining and murder, in the area of 66km2.
There is a high caseload for its eight detectives (they should have 15), its victim-empowerment centre closed down due to financial challenges, and there are no holding cells for detainees at the station.
The cells were, in fact, turned into a storage area, which has forced the station to transport its detainees to the Benoni SAPS holding cells.
This was revealed during the DA premier-elect for Gauteng, Solly Msimanga’s, oversight visit to the Crystal Park Police Station on November 22.
Msimanga bemoaned the lack of new recruits and poor morale because there are no incentives, such as promotions.
He said the lack of recruitment would create a problem in the next few years as the SAPS’ middle to senior management leaves the force, leading to no skills transfer.
He believes Gauteng’s response of implementing crime prevention wardens was not a good alternative because they receive dno specialised police training.
“We aim to expose that taking the budget away from the SAPS is not the answer. Instead of putting in more resources, they are taking more away.
“They don’t take resources away from the VIP Protection unit. It continues to have its budget and vehicles every year. But what happens to the men and women who want to fight crime? They have to sit with dilapidated facilities and broken vehicles.”
On illegal mining, Msimanga said there is “no political will or plan” to deal with it and the SAPS is inadequately equipped to fight the heavily armed miners.
“We hope to have a conversation with the police minister and ask him what his plan is. We’ve been asking for years, but there’s been no clear plan. If there was a plan in place, we should be seeing improvements. Instead, we are seeing deterioration.”
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