Northern Cape Premier Zamani Saul has raised his concern about burglaries at schools in the province.
Saul, along with the Acting Provincial Police Commissioner and the MEC for Transport, Safety and Liaison Nomandla Bloem, released the provincial crime statistics in Kimberley for the fourth quarter of 2021/2022.
Burglaries at schools have increased, with 82 cases reported, the highest in the country.
Acting Provincial Police Commissioner, Major General Koliswa Otola elaborates.
“I think that’s an indictment on all of us. We have to make a call on our communities to ensure they protect these public assets. If government builds a school in the community that school belongs to the community, it’s an asset that belongs to the community and the community must protect it.”
Contact crimes
Meanwhile, contact crimes saw an increase in province in the last three months.
Otola says more males died in that period.
“In terms of contact crime, we are looking at murder…in these three months, we are reporting a 20.3% increase, which is 16 cases of murder was recorded compared to the same period last year. The majority of victims were male – which was 83, followed by females [which was] 15. The youngest victim was a 17-day-old male and the oldest was an 88-year-old male. There were two reported incidents where murdered occurred against the farming community.”
High crime rates in Kimberley hindrance to freedom
In April this year, residents of Kimberley’s Galeshewe township said escalating crime is robbing them of their freedom of movement and the right to safety.
Residents report an increase in serious crimes in the area since a community anti-crime group stopped operating there.
The group suspended operations in the area earlier this year after a foreign national was allegedly killed during one of their operations.
Residents also claimed that robberies, break-ins, stabbings, and assaults increased.
-Additional reporting by Ulrich Hendricks
