Cele promises increased police visibility in Diepsloot
Residents believe the police have failed them in combating crime in the area.
Police Minister Bheki Cele arrived at the Diepsloot Police Station and addressed the protestors.
Cele promised increased police visibility in the area following an increase in the crime rate, which has resulted in the loss of innocent lives.
He visited the families of the victims who were gunned down recently to send his condolences and also visited the scenes where these crime incidents took place.
The protestors are currently moving towards Ext 1.
Residents have gathered outside the Diepsloot Police Station demanding to meet with Police Minister Bheki Cele today ( March 6), to address the increased crime rate in the area.
Community leader Andrew Maleka said even though the MEC for Community Safety, Faith Mazibuko is present at the station, they do not want to talk to her, but would rather wait for the Police Minister, Bheki Cele, who is said to be on his way.
“We are not at any stage to engage with Faith Mazibuko because she is useless, all she knows is to host Imbizos”, said Maleka as he addresses the community. He assured the residents that he will be with them every step of the way even if the police decide to fire rubber bullets or arrest them.
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Residents believe that undocumented foreign nationals are the reason for the increased crime rate in the area. “We want the police to search each and every shack where they (foreign nationals) reside and look for their documentation because we believe they find it easy to engage in crime knowing very well they will not be identified,” said protestor Abraham Lochuchi.
“They rob us of our money and phones, and we cannot search their shacks ourselves because they might have dangerous weapons. We also want the police to be proactive in the community and patrol the area 24/7,” said another protestor, Thabiso Lebogang.
Another community leader, Lefa Nkala, said they do not feel safe in their own community and neighbouring areas and if the police do not assist them urgently, they will embark on a three-day shutdown. ” Today we are here at the station, tomorrow we will go house to house ourselves if the minister doesn’t come up with any solution.”
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This is a developing story.
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