POLOKWANE – There has been a notable increase of 44.6% in community-reported crimes in the Polokwane Police Station area according to the 2022/23 second quarter crime statistics released by the Limpopo police.
The local service gathered with stakeholders including Community Safety MEC, Florence Radzilani and provincial police commissioner Major General Thembi Hadebe at the Provincial Joint Operations Centre on December 2.
Community crimes include violence, underage sex or sex without consent, or illegal drug usage but also discrimination, road rage, undeclared work, and burglary within a social group or habitat that is punishable by law.
In July to September this year, the Polokwane Police Station recorded 1 568 community crimes, an increase of 484 compared to those reported last year for the same period.
The police station is second in Limpopo and followed by Mankweng and Seshego.
They are all led by the Vhembe District.
Radzilani said the eradication of crime altogether should begin with public office bearers who are in leadership positions abiding by the law.
“We too need to be watched closely by law enforcers so that we lead diligently at all times. We must be screened for traffic fines because if leaders do not comply, we must just forget about solving crime in our province,” she lamented.
Hadebe mentioned that most criminals associated with community crimes have been arrested and have either been convicted or awaiting trial.
“Overall, we recorded a 23.1% increase in the contact crime category with a staggering 7 000 cases of assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm, occurring in the residence of a perpetrator or victims, 557 in public places and 441 in liquor outlets. This is a matter of concern because these cases happened right before our eyes in households and liquor outlets,” she added.
Even so, vigilantism by community members, an act showing a loss of trust in the police service has been shunned by deputy police commissioner Jan Scheepers, saying most police members do their level best to respond to community crimes timeously.
“The crime statistics reflect the behaviour of communities and not the police. We need to first fix ourselves instead of blaming the police who do their level best. There should never be a loss of trust in the police. If a person commits a crime in front of me, it is my responsibility to stop them while I still can. If I am a passenger of a driver speeding, it is my responsibility to stop them from doing that,” he added.
