Cape Town - Community Policing Forums (CPFs) operating in some of Cape Town’s crime hot spots have appealed to communities to stop holding all-night parties and demanded that shebeen owners close at 9pm to ensure the safety of their customers.
Nyanga CPF chairperson Martin Makhasi urged residents to report shebeens that operate throughout the night and to drink indoors.
Khayelitsha safety and security cluster chairperson Mbuyiseli Boqwana said the neighbourhood watch was active throughout the township. He said the CPF was working with a taverns’ interim committee, distributing pamphlets advising patrons on how to behave.
Makhasi said he was happy that there would be greater police visibility after 264 recruits were recently dispatched to the Nyanga cluster.
“Police visibility is needed in the area during this time. We are working closely with them to make sure no person would walk at night while drinking. But residents must take part in operations to reduce high levels of crimes associated with this time.”
Makhasi said alcohol consumption was a huge factor contributing to increase in crime during the festive season. “Shebeen owners must take responsibility for what they are selling. They must discourage children from buying alcohol. Parents must also stop giving children pocket money as they use it to buy alcohol. We will make sure that people don’t use public spaces such as parks as drinking dens,” he said.
Boqwana said they were already conducting patrols at Strand and Monwabisi beaches to deter revellers from drinking. “We will also intensify night patrols in all shebeens in Khayelitsha. We are busy encouraging the owners to report suspicious criminals in their shebeens to the police before they commit crime. We will be in touch with the police until holidays are over,” he said.
On Wednesday five suspects were arrested in Nyanga after a 22-year-old man was fatally stabbed in Crossroads on Monday.
Police spokesperson Noloyiso Rwexana said: “Police were called to the scene at midnight, at the corner of Imbumba and Moya streets, Crossroads. They found the victim on the ground with several stab wounds to his body.”
Mayoral committee member for safety and security JP Smith said 115 people had been arrested in recent days and nearly 5000 litres of alcohol confiscated from beaches in Operation Exodus.
“The city’s enforcement agencies are being kept on their toes,” he said.