The KwaZulu-Natal MEC for Transport, Community Safety and Liaison, Mxolisi Kaunda, has lauded the police for their sterling work in ensuring relative peace and stability in KwaZulu-Natal during the festive season.
MEC Kaunda convened a special meeting yesterday (20 December 2016) with the KwaZulu-Natal’s SAPS top management to assess the impact of the festive season safety plan, particularly in hot spot areas in the province which include the Glebelands Hostel, Intshangwe, Swayimane, Ladysmith and Dabhazi area in Nongoma.
He also praised the police for their sterling work in arresting four suspects linked to the murder of Inkosi Mathonsi in Mandeni two weeks ago. Kaunda told the mourners at the funeral over the weekend that police were working around the clock to find the suspects and that arrests were imminent.
Building on this success, Kaunda urged the police to continue maintaining a strong presence in Glebelands, KwaMashu, Jacobs hostels, Swayimane, Intshangwe, Ladysmith and Nongoma areas which are notorious for violent attacks and murders.
“If the report I have received from the police is anything to go by, the province is making great strides in reducing the levels of crime in the province, particularly during this festive season. I have also received reports from members of the community that there was relative calm in these areas” said Kaunda.
He emphasized visible policing as key in ensuring that people of KwaZulu-Natal have safe and peaceful Christmas holidays. “We are pleased our 24 000 police officers deployed during the festive season are making a huge impact through intelligence-driven operations in crime-ridden areas of our province,” said Kaunda.
In the wake of the recent killings in Intshangwe, Kaunda said he was closely monitoring the situation and that police have been beefed up in the area to curb further loss of lives. Police are following important leads and the arrest of suspects implicated in the recent murders is imminent. We are also pleased that police have made great strides in the murder case of Nonsikelelo Blose and Xolani Ngcobo who were killed in August this year as suspects in both cases are behind bars,” said Kaunda. Both cases are set for trial in the beginning of 2017.
Kaunda urged the police to be vigilant when doing their work in communities as the province was experiencing an increase in the number of police attacks. “Police are the only shield between the law abiding citizens and heartless criminals, therefore we urge them to take precautionary measures when dealing with suspects,” said Kaunda.
He called upon the people of KwaZulu-Natal to cooperate with the police and provide them with information at all times to ensure that criminal activities are detected before they occur.