To protect and serve is my mission – WO Hendrik Williams

POLOKWANE – “Fighting crime and saving lives is not just a job that pays the bills at the end of the month, but a passion I have. It is my duty to go the extra mile to serve and protect people,” said WO Hendrik Williams.

Williams has been in the South African Police Service (SAPS) since 1997.

The 48-year-old is a crime prevention shift commander at the Westenburg police station.

“I am the second eldest of 15 children and I am the first one in my family to become a police officer. In 1988 I joined Umkhonto we Sizwe (MK), the armed wing of the ANC during the Apartheid era. When Apartheid ended, I left the ANC military wing and started working as a bodyguard in 1994. I protected politicians like the premier, MECs and ministers. In 1997 I joined the SAPS and started as a sergeant in the Public Order Police Unit. In 1999 I joined the SAPS Crime Intelligence Unit until 2003,” Williams said.

In 2003 the father of seven children, of which two are adopted, asked for a transfer to Kimberley.

“My wife is from Kimberley and she wanted to move closer to home so I requested a transfer. In Kimberley I was part of a specialised SAPS team that focused on gang violence and drugs, but then the unforeseen happened, I was diagnosed with prostate cancer. I had to undergo several operations to have the cancer removed.

The diagnosis changed my life. I was reassigned from field work to office duty. Last year I decided to move back home to Polokwane and now I am working at the Westenburg police station,” Williams said.

According to Williams, it is important to make a change in someone’s life, but you must start at home first.

“I am from Westenburg, born and bred, so I feel it is my duty to make a positive change in our community. We have a problem with drug abuse and I plead with the community to please help us fight this evil that is destroying our youth and families,” Williams said.

Although Williams loves his work and enjoys making a difference, he misses his family.

“I am proud of my work because I strive to help people. If a person comes to the police they must be satisfied with the service they get and when they leave they must have been helped and feel at peace. But I must confess, being away from my wife and children is difficult because I miss them every single day. I see them once every second month,” he said.

Asked what he would change in the SAPS and why if he had the authority, Williams said: “The laws on self-defence, because too many police officials are being killed.”