Deputy Police Minister Bongani Mkhongi has called on the police to be merciless when dealing with criminals. He was speaking at the launch of a Community Policing Strategy in Dobsonville, Soweto on Saturday.
The strategy is aimed at getting every South African involved in fighting crime.
Mkhongi says since the dawn of democracy, South Africans left the job of crime prevention to the police only. He says the new strategy will give control back to the community.
“Now, we are building an army of responsible citizens of the Republic of SA to defend our country; to defend our flag; to defend our colours; to defend our borders; to defend our schools; to defend our universities; to defend the people of the republic of SA; and defend our constitution because the war against crime is not a war of the police. It is the people’s war against a common enemy of the revolution and that common enemy of the revolution is criminals.”
Mkhongi says so many children have suffered at the hands of the criminals and police officers have lost their lives trying to fight crime.
“And we must be merciless to criminals. This thing of being merciful to criminals is a problem. It’s a problem this thing of being merciful. Why must we be merciful to people who are merciless; who are merciless against ordinary children? When a criminal is dead, it’s an issue, but when a law enforcement person is dead it’s quiet here in SA. Because our people are hypocrites. So, we must focus to fight crime. ”
Police Commissioner Khehla Sitole says this new strategy will give Community Policing a clear vision of fighting crime.
“One of the approaches in this strategy is the de-resourcing of the criminals and that is a declaration of a psychological war against them, and in the de-resourcing of the criminals, it’s just taking the young person out of reach. So, as you see them here, we are going to take all of them out of reach of criminals, to collapse their operation.”
Pastor TJ Murray from 911 Bikers says they are looking forward to working with the police to fight crime.
“This specific initiative is very important for SA in terms of fighting crime and we as a community must get together and this is what the police are asking of us as a united SA to stand behind the police and fight crime. We are bigger than the criminals. We are more than the criminals. So ,we must uproot their plans and their purposes. Our country has more to go for, than hiding behind the criminals. ”
These community members will be identifiable in clearly printed blue jackets, but they will not be armed.
