Crime information assists in proper planning  

28 September 2009 

Mpumalanga Safety, Security and Liaison MEC, Ms Sibongile Manana, urged police in Mpumalanga to refrain from tampering with crime information, including statistics at their stations so that their performance could look good when they are reviewed.  

Manana was responding to allegations that some police officers do not give case numbers and other relevant information to complainants.

She also urged the community to ensure that when they open cases they do not leave the station without getting case numbers. She said it was their constitutional right to be given sufficient information by the police regarding their cases.  

Manana has appealed to police stations to ensure that they report crime incidences accurately because falsifying or interfering with crime information could make government not to plan accordingly and allocate resources appropriately.

“The police must record crime incidents correctly, because without correct information about the extent of the problem of crime, Government cannot plan appropriately,” said Manana.  

She was speaking during a Safety and Security Imbizo held at Ogies in Emalahleni on Sunday, 27 September 2009.       

She appealed to the police to ensure that when they recruit reservists, they also include both farmers and their workers. She said farm workers must participate like all other citizens of the country as they are also affected by crime.               

MEC Manana urged the management of police stations to strengthen sector policing so that the farming communities are able to participate in their programmes.

Community members of Phola Township in Ogies told the MEC that they wanted their own police station because the Ogies Police Station is far from them and when they needed assistance, the police were unable to respond immediately.  

They also complained that police constantly loose dockets and they are not providing feedback to the complainants on progress of their cases.

Farm dwellers have also complained that police look down upon them and are treating them like second class citizens.  

It was also alleged that police in the area are not responding timeously to crime scenes, when called they complain that they do not have transport.

Responding to the allegations from community members, police provincial crime investigations Head, Director Tony Gama, said that police officers should work and stop colluding with criminals and those who do not want to work should leave the service.

Gama called on the community to report any wrong doing on the part of the police so that the office of the provincial commissioner could take appropriate steps against officials not doing their work.

Enquiries:

Joseph Mabuza
Tel: 013 766 4055
Cell: 082 678 1450 

Issued by: Department of Safety, Security and Liaison

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