Good Day Minister Cele.

I write this requested after a meeting we had with our local Counsellor Ward 11 Sarepta Mrs Visagie and the Captain and Station Commander of Kuils River Police Station in Cape Town. Also the heads of law enforcement were also available in this community meeting. I would like to express my concerns and make suggestions. The Station Commander highlighted a number of key issues on how reporting incidents works including the public policing duties. We had this meeting due to the increase of crimininal incidents in Sarepta. One of the main concerns that was highlighted is the areas covered by this Police Station. Which range from areas such as Sarepta, Eikenbosch, Central Kuilsriver, Zevenwatch, Summerville and other surroundings under Kuilsriver. As these areas are within Kuils River and cover vast distances has an impact on the response by police. As we know in this Country as a whole we have a late response problem by police anywhere. You are lucky if you get a quick response in the area. He also explained that due to the allocation of duties, they have to cover one incident after another. Which causes the delay to response to incidents. However, in our area we have a serious issue of increasing drug use and gangster-ism. This is caused by a serious social issue that we are having a service delivery meeting to address today as I write this issue. Break ins are becoming frequent, gangster threats are becoming more serious and damage to peoples property is increasing. Unfortunately we do not have any Youth Centres that are available to stimulate young people. The next best option they have is to join the loitering drug users at corners and that is where the ground work starts for grooming young gangsters and criminals. Children as young as 8 years old are smoking and playing with Okapis. We really do not have a really visible policing system or neighbourhood watch. I will suggest the same thing I suggested to the Station Commander. Please look into the issue of opening two more police stations one central to Sarepta, Highbury and Kalkfontein and one central to Soneike, Eikenbosch and Zewenwacht area. Then the main Station can cover Kuilsriver Central. It is better to have a Police station close to the areas with incidents than have a police station that people can't even walk to. because to go to the current station in an direction you have to drive to it. That is my suggestion and also provide patrol vehicles to Patrol our areas or possibly provide community involvement processes rather.