CPF suspends Youth Desk leader
FOURWAYS – THE Douglasdale Community Policing Forum (CPF) has suspended its Youth Desk leader, Tshepo Marakalala, on suspicions of 'misleading the South African Police Service, the CPF and the public.
This is linked to the cancellation of the much-anticipated Matha Fun Run. The fun run had been widely advertised and was planned to take place on 18 April at the Bel Air Shopping Centre, but chairperson of the CPF, Jean Berdou, said they ‘shut it down’ because Marakalala refused to adhere to their conditions.
According to Berdou, Marakalala, representing the Youth Desk, approached the forum last year with an idea to organise a fun run called Matha. He said, after giving Marakalala a thumbs up, the forum found out as the event drew nearer that Marakalala had printed brochures which had account numbers that did not belong to the CPF. The account details were the same ones the public was encouraged to deposit R150 into to secure their participation in the event.
“The account numbers belonged to United Youth Projects. We demanded that he gives us sight and control over the account, but he refused,” said Berdou, adding that this was when they ordered him to ‘shut the event down’.
He claims because of the presence of the forum and South African Police Service logos, the public was ‘induced’ to give their money, thinking the bank account belonged to the CPF.
“After the hearings we may find that other people are involved and not just Tshepo,” said Berdou.
But Marakalala disagreed with Berdou’s version of events. He said in the seven years he had been volunteering for the organisation, he had approached the CPF to assist financially in projects he was doing in the community, but they refused, saying they had no money. He said that he, on behalf of the forum and in conjunction with the United Youth Projects, has run events in the community.
“We would tell organisations that we partner with what we needed for the project and they would supply it because the CPF wouldn’t help,” he said.
He said they decided to have an entry fee to the Matha Fun Run to raise funds for the Youth Desk and no longer ‘beg’ for money. Marakalala said he updated the forum monthly, so he had been transparent.
Marakalala was nominated by the Youth Desk Cluster and also reports to them. “Suspensions of Youth Desk leaders can only be done by us. The CPF should have notified us of any issues and let us make the decision. We take this move as a personal attack on Tshepo,” said Youth Desk Cluster team member Papi Sathekge.
Berdou responded, “There is nothing personal therein. Our concern is that we raise substantial money from the community and need to ensure that corporate governance is adhered to properly so that the money raised from the public in the name of the CPF goes to the CPF. Anyone can raise funds in their own name but one cannot use the CPF’s name for fundraising and then the money goes elsewhere.”
The forum has not released a date for the hearing yet. Jennifer Ntlatseng of the Department of Community Safety said although they were aware that the CPF had challenges with the Youth Desk, they were not aware of the suspension. She said the department’s MEC Sizakele Nkosi-Malobane would intervene, but was waiting for the MEC’s personal assistant to present a date for the meeting with the CPF, the Youth Desk and Saps.
Station commander of the Douglasdale Police Station Brigadier Lettie Hugo said they were aware of the suspension and are awaiting for the meeting that the MEC is going to call.
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