The North Beach Community Police Forum embarked on an awareness campaign to show force and might against crime by hosting a motorcade on Friday, 26 August.
The motorcade which took place on the busy Comrades Marathon weekend was joined by the South African Police Services, Durban Metro Police, various security personnel, local patrollers and community members.
Soraya Shaik, North Beach Community Police Forum said it was good to see different sectors in attendance.
“We joined forces with different sectors with one common goal, which is the fight against crime. We welcome the support and presence of all those who were involved, even forces from outside our precinct who were willing to render assistance. This was indeed enlightening,” said Shaik.
Shaik said that the awareness campaign yielded good results as there were no reported incidents on that week.
“There were no crime report to SAPS in our area even though it was the Comrades Marathon weekend. I believe that working together towards a common goal can achieve effective results more efficiently. I welcome all sectors, both private and business to join on our campaign to eradicate crime and to restore peace and safety that once prevailed,” she said.
Captain Muzi Maphumulo, Durban Central SAPS communications officer confirmed that crime is an issue in the area. “It was necessary to show high visibility of security. Police believe that criminals reside within the communities, so if communities are working with the police, crime would be eradicated. We therefore, encourage our communities to patrol their areas. Residents should be involved in local police agencies,” said Maphumulo.
Sharmaine Sewshanker, ward 26 PR councillor said: “We were happy to see the increased police visibility in our area. I would like to urge residents to not only report crime on WhatsApp groups but they need to report it directly to tollfree call centre number and generate reference number. In that way we are able to take notices of the number of criminal activities and this will help with the statistics because we can say there is an influx of crime but where is the proof? Residents need to take ownership of the area and become pro-active,” she said.
Residents are encouraged to call 031 361 0000 or 10 111 to report crime.
