Greenwood Park cop is a crime buster, communicator and counsellor
After Chonco and his family became victims of crime, he decided that he would one day become a policeman as he wanted to curb crime.
A POLICEMAN is taking the old adage, ‘if the cap fits, wear it’ to a whole new level.
Constable Zenzele Chonco is the sectors 1 and 6 commander at Greenwood Park SAPS and the recently appointed spokesperson, too. He is also a qualified social worker, a skill he says he is pleased about as he sometimes brings it into his everyday work.
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“I joined SAPS in 2004 at Brighton Beach where I was appointed as a data typist. Four years later, I transferred to Greenwood Park as a police officer working in the charge office,” said Chonco.
In 2016, Chonco decided to use his degree in social work at the Department of Correctional Facilities in Westville.
It was his love for people and wanting them to do better and to rehabilitate, and seeing transformation in people that kept him at the facility until 2022.
“As a social worker, my job entailed crime prevention and victim-friendly facility counselling. This ranged from offenders of serious to very serious crimes, but due to the nature of the environment, I left and joined SAPS again,” he said.
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He rejoined Greenwood Park SAPS and was placed in the charge office.
“When people came to lay charges, I did everything in my power to help them. I wanted them to leave the charge office satisfied that they had been assisted the way they expected,” he said.
A few months ago, Chonco was appointed as communications officer for the police station, a position he says he never applied for but thinks he was chosen for because of his great people and communication skills.
“My job as the sectors 1 and 6 commander is crime prevention and conducting patrols and awareness campaigns. I also promote the station and the good work our policemen do. I disseminate information about the more serious crimes, too, so the community is aware,” said Chonco.
He has initiated search-and-seize campaigns in schools and talks about gender-based violence in clinics.
“The objective of going into schools is not to necessarily make arrests but to hopefully stop teenagers from going down the wrong path. Sometimes, we may have to make an arrest, but that’s not the main reason for such a campaign,” said Chonco.
He said Greenwood Park Police Station has dedicated policemen who give 100% to their jobs every day to ensure the community is assisted.
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