Police minister Bheki Cele was back in the Bay on Monday with a walkabout and a meeting at the Chatty Community Centre eliciting scores of stories on the difficulties of living in “gangland”.
Cele, who last week promised that a specialist anti-gang unit would be established, reiterated that promise but said community members needed to understand establishing a unit took time.
He said that a task team had already been deployed to the northern areas to curb ongoing gang violence.
Cele, flanked by top brass, including national commissioner General Khehla Sitole and provincial commissioner Lieutenant-General Liziwe Ntshinga, walked along two streets in Helenvale to visit the families of those who had been injured or killed in gang violence.
During the walkabout in Anita Drive, Cele met Marska Patrick, 38, whose son Turston,10, had his cheek grazed by a bullet as he played outside in November.
Patrick said she had received a panicked call from her neighbour saying her son had been shot.
“I panicked and when I got home he was already at the hospital. I am just so grateful that he is fine,” she said.
Asked what it was like living among gangsters, Patrick said if she could get together enough money she would move to Humansdorp.
“It is too dangerous here.” From Patrick’s house, Cele, flanked by heavily armed police, walked into Regional Road.
The group was also escorted by a marching band.
Cele visited the family of Karin Crafford, 34, who was killed on November 30 while walking home at about 6.15pm.
Cele addressed several residents who joined him and the police brass on the walk.
“We are here to help you. We believe that working together will make the situation better for all.
“One thing I noticed was that there are no areas or recreational facilities where children can play. We need to look into this as it is important,” he said.
“It is the gangsters that do not let your kids play in the streets. You are only a kid once and we cannot let the youth be robbed [of their childhood].
“We cannot allow this, kids must be kids.”
Shortly after meeting residents in Helenvale, Cele and the top brass were whisked to the Chatty Community Centre in Bethelsdorp.
About 600 residents, community leaders and community policing forum members arrived at the event.
Cele said officials were working on a solution to the problem of witnesses being killed to ensure that people come forward without fearing for their lives.
Another issue he raised was that gangsters were getting bail and also operating out of prisons while detained.
“We are working with a team of prosecutors to make sure there is no bail.
“No bail is what we are saying. If you are a gangster, you must stay in jail.
“Some of these issues are not police issues. Correctional services also has a part to play and we are going to ask that these gangsters sentenced to jail for a lengthy period of time get moved,” Cele said.
“They must be moved to another province so that they are taken away.”
At the meeting, some angry residents criticised the police, calling for more action to be taken on drug peddlers, gangs and the high murder and crime rate in the northern areas.
Eastern Cape transport, safety and liaison MEC Weziwe Tikana addressed residents, calling for them to support the police in the fight against crime.
Cele backed Tikana, calling for residents to hand over the criminals that lived in their neighbourhood.
“You know who they are. They live among us.
“They are your brothers, mothers, fathers, sons and family.
“We need to stand together to fight the crime,” he said.
Several residents asked why no action had been taken on building another police station in the Bethelsdorp area.
Cele said he hoped that the police station would be built by the middle of next year.
“In the Western Cape, it took us about nine months to get a new police station built.
“I am going there [on Tuesday] to open it. So it is possible and this is what I want to do here,” he said.