Fighting crime is the CPF’s number one goal
Despite all CPF's efforts to keep residents safe, there are still those who are not aware of the work these brave volunteers do. For this reason, Francois van Niekerk, deputy chairperson of Sector 3 CPF, explains to Review what they do and how to residents can get involved
POLOKWANE – For each sector of the city, there is a Community Policing Forum (CPF) that supplements the work of the SAPS.
They look after members of the community and try to halt and report criminal activity. Despite all their efforts to keep residents safe, there are still those who are not aware of the work these brave volunteers do. For this reason, Francois van Niekerk, deputy chairperson of Sector 3 CPF, explained to Review what they do and how to get involved.
“Combatting crime is every citizen’s duty. To combat crime on your own is challenging and dangerous. To start your own ‘neighbourhood watch can also be challenging. The CPF in Polokwane is well established with excellent systems that work for us. We have a very good relationship with the SAPS and join hands with them in fighting crime,” he said.
According to Van Niekerk, there are various roles in the organisation one can be part of.
“Many of the female members are part of the administration of each sector but they are not limited to this only. There are also many other roles like doing patrols, respond to emergency calls collecting and channeling information to the relevant persons,” Van Niekerk continued.
He said there are people who enquire about, and want to join, the CPF every day. Their reason is usually that increasing continually and they want to be part of the solution to the problem. Adding that there are no fees attached to becoming a member of the CPF.
“The CPF is a non-profitable forum and there are no fees payable, however, each sector is managed on their own and some may ask a donation fee to keep the patrol teams running. Persons who are actively involved in the CPF and do patrols do so voluntarily and are not receiving any compensation for their efforts,” Van Niekerk concluded.
To sign up you can either attend a CPF meeting in your sector, where you will get a application form to fill in or you can visit the CPF website for more information on www.c-p-f.co.za/polokwane-cpf.
Public Relations officer of Polokwane Community Policing Forum (CPF), Johan Retters added: “It has been proven over and over again that the CPF are always first to respond and first on the scene during any emergency. The commitment of CPF members to protect each other is astonishing.”
What you need to know as a CPF member:
Each new member will be added on the relevant WhatsApp Groups – information relevant to the Sector’s safety is communicated on these groups.
“Sharing information in a organised way is the key to a successful CPF,” said Retters.
When joining the CPF it is highly recommended that all members buy a radio. Every night each sector has radio call. This is to check if your are safe and if your radio is working. During the night radio users can call an emergency on the radio. All radio users in your Sector will respond to your emergency. Children are also taught to use the radio.
CPF patrol teams travel more than 600km daily in and around Polokwane. They patrol the streets during the night and in some Sectors even during the day. There are almost 600 CPF radios throughout Polokwane.
Polokwane’s sectors include:
- Sector 1 – CBD
- Sector 2 – Bendor, Sterpark, Moregloed
- Sector 3 – Penina Park
- Sector 4 – Fauna and Flora Park
- Sector 5 – Northern Upper Town (NUT)
- Sector 6 – Plots and Farms
- Edwel – Eduan Park and Welgelegen
- Ladanna CPF.
