Policing expert, Eldred de Klerk says there is inadequate police presence in communities that are infiltrated with gangs and violence.
This follows a shooting incident in Westbury, Johannesburg on Tuesday night.
It came hours after police Minister Bheki Cele visited the area and promised residents that the police’s Tactical Response Team will be deployed to prevent such incidents.
The community has been protesting over gangsterism and drug related crime in the area.
De Klerk says: “Our police are not getting smarter in terms of their response to gangs and organised criminality. Unfortunately, there are pockets of individuals and officers who understand the police’s response is inadequate and that it needs to change. It’s not enough to saturate areas with police, it’s what police do in those areas.”
“You need to, together with the city council and housing, get to understand what the economy is like in the community. So police need to do more than just go on patrol, they need to be out there on foot, mapping the area, understanding the economy and then working to apply bylaws and regulations,” adds de Klerk.
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