Community members demand protection from Police during protest

Residents of Semomamo informal settlement outside Dalmada marched to the provincial headquarters of the South African Police Service (SAPS) last Thursday to plead for the provision of adequate safety in the area.
The community members claimed they had, for too long, been subjected to extreme atrocities, including torture, by certain groups and individuals who have also demolished their property.
Community representative, Msima Malibe said they have reported the matter to the South African Police Service on numerous occasions but their efforts fell to deaf ears.
“We are living in extreme fear of death due to display and firing of guns. We need protection from the South African Police Service, we are entitled to be protected and we demand such. We need peace at Semomamo through visibility of SAPS vehicle.
There are people who are firing gun shots in the area every day for no particular reason and we need them to stop.We are frustrated by the failure of the government to deal with the issue. We feel that the perpetrators are receiving underserved favour from government authorities who has so far showed no sympathies to the vulnerable people of Semomamo. We don’t know why the groups and individuals are harassing the residents but we want this to come to an end” remarked Malibe.
The group then marched to the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform where they demanded that all beneficiaries of Kalkfontein 1001 LS near Dalmada be given the title deeds and let it be divided into equal parts so that all the beneficiaries can benefit.
“We need transparency and fairness in land allocation at Kalkfontein. We demand that the departmental officials must consider the public service act when dealing with clients because some of them take biased decision concerning the claim of Kalkfontein. We demand that Rural Development officials must consider the public service act when dealing with clients because some of them take biased decision concerning the claim of Kalkfontein,” Malibe said.
Police Spokesperson, Moatshe Ngoepe said they are not aware of the alleged incidents in the area but urged community members to report any crime-related incidents directly to their station commander Gift Makhubela.
Spokesperson for the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform, Avhashoni Magada said they were aware of community demands and they are processing them.

Story: Herbert Rachuene
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