The day began with an anti-crime campaign, which was then followed by sporting activities.
Speakers including police officers and community leaders, who urged residents of the area to stand together against crime.
Parents were encouraged to fight crime in their homes and to stop harbouring criminals in their shacks.
They were told that although structures of government are involved in the fight against crime, the residents themselves will have to act, because they are the only people who can end the scourge of crime in their community.
The police admitted that they, alone, cannot solve the crime problem in the area; communities need to stand together against criminals.
“It’s time that young people rise and say enough is enough,’ said the >Boksburg SAPS’s Sgt Cebisa Maseko.
Community leaders urged the crowd to deprive criminals of the space and the platform to carry out their activities.
“We must be organised, get to know each other and make sure that there is no peace for criminals, no matter who they are,” said one of the community leaders, Solly Nonyane.
He stated that part of the Know your Neighbour campaign would include creating a database of all the residents of Angelo.
“We will be going to all the homes in the area, to register every person living here, in order to have details of the residents,” he explained.
”The information will assist authorities to identify residents in case something happen to them or they are wanted for criminal activities.”
Both participating football clubs from Angelo received football kit (soccer jerseys) sponsored by a Boksburg couple, Emilicha Wolters and her husband, Bernd, who run a local business that specialises in prefabricated houses.
The couple also donated a trophy, which was awarded to the winning football team during the event.
“Although we can’t help the whole world, it is very important to remember those who are less fortunate than us in our community, by getting involved in doing something that will make a difference in their lives,” said Emilicha, who hopes more local businesses will come onboard to lend a helping hand to the needy residents of local informal settlements.
“We have, in the past couple of months, donated a prefabricated house to a family, who was sleeping in water pipes.”
Representatives of the Gauteng Department of Community Safety and the Boksburg SAPS Victim Support Centre were also present at the event.
A youth forum was also formed.
Members of the forum will work with the police and the Gauteng Department of Safety in implementing a range of strategies to target the various social and environmental factors that increase the risk of crime and victimisation. -@FanieFLK
