- Deputy police minister Cassel Mathale led a community crime prevention imbizo for the Heideveld community on Friday 10 May at Woodlands Primary School from 09:00.
- Despite the inclement weather, community organisations were joined by residents and top police and safety officials to discuss crime prevention and crime-related concerns, with the main aim of the event to create a platform for residents to raise these concerns.
Deputy police minister Cassel Mathale led a community crime prevention imbizo for the Heideveld community on Friday 10 May at Woodlands Primary School from 09:00.
Despite the inclement weather, community organisations were joined by residents and top police and safety officials to discuss crime prevention and crime-related concerns, with the main aim of the event to create a platform for residents to raise these concerns.
The event also created an exhibition with various police units including immigration and forensics.
Manenberg Community Policing Forum (CPF) chair Vernon Visagie says it was significant and important for the ministry to deliver feedback following the imbizo held at Phoenix High School in Manenberg recently.
“This is where he gives feedback, but also where he listens to our concerns and addresses our needs,” he says to People’s Post. “Heideveld is very organised and all sectors were represented in Heideveld.”
At the event, he continued: “On behalf of the Heideveld community, minister, thank you for bringing us together again. Thank you for making this possible.”
CPF deputy chair Venessa Adriaanse says the community took full advantage of the opportunity to address their concerns.
Residents commended Brig Sanela Zama for serving the community well.
Heideveld is part of the Manenberg policing precinct.
Gun-wielding gunmen running the streets, gender-based violence, robberies, breaking into places of worship, lack of programmes for seniors and youths and general crime and gangsterism were some of the main concerns raised.
Radley Petersen, chair of the Manenberg neighbourhood watch forum says safety and security is top of everyone’s priority.
“As neighbourhood watches, we feel undervalued, underappreciated. We feel like we are always a last resort, where we feel we should be on the top of the list, as police are,” he says.
Following around two hours of listening to residents’ concerns and comments, Mathale also encouraged residents to make their marks for any party they feel will do best for them.
This engagement follows a promise made at an unannounced visit to a Heideveld informal settlement in the area several weeks ago by Mathale, where residents encouraged him to return for a formal visit, allowing the residents to have their say.
He commended the community for their organised nature.
“You are organised, and when you are organised, you can defeat anything. Where there is leadership, there is order and there is leadership here,” he says.
“With leaders like you, we can achieve more. Let us work together to do more in serving our communities.”
