Grabouw, Western Cape - The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) has been ordered to investigate crime in the Western Cape town of Grabouw, the police ministry said on Wednesday.
The decision follows an imbizo that Police Minister Nkosinathi Nhleko held with community leaders and Grabouw police commanders in the hall of the Kathleen Murray Primary School on Tuesday evening, said spokesman Musa Zondi.
Some 800 community leaders and Grabouw residents attended the meeting.
Zondi confirmed that the seriousness of pleas and comments from the Grabouw community led to Nhleko’s decision to order the Ipid investigation.
Ipid, run by executive director Robert McBride, was formed to conduct independent investigations of identified criminal offences allegedly committed by members of the SA Police Service (SAPS) and the Municipal Police Services (MPS).
“Ipid will now be sent in to investigate any wrongdoings by the local police and report back to the minister and the local community,” Zondi said.
Romano Lekay, leader of the Proudly Grabouw movement, said he welcomed Nhleko’s decision.
During the imbizo, Lekay told Nhleko that so far this year 39 people had been murdered in Grabouw.
He said: “That is a whole street of our people. These are just statistics to anybody else.
“However, to us these are our brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts, grandmothers and grandfathers. They are the people we grew up with,” Lekay said.
“Crime in Grabouw is spiralling out of control. Every day we feel that we are losing the battle against crime,” said Grabouw Youth leader Enrico Oosthuizen.
The University of the Western Cape recently did a study to uncover the factors driving high levels of substance abuse in the area, according to Oosthuizen.
“The results were shocking. The study found that children as young as eight years old in Grabouw use drugs and alcohol. They do it to escape circumstances characterised by poverty and social problems including absentee parents, domestic violence, crime and high rates of HIV,” Oosthuizen said.
Grabouw District leader of the SA Communist Party, Margaret le Roux, said she was satisfied with Nhleko’s decision.
Le Roux, who is also secretary of the Grabouw Civic Organisation (GCO), said they were responsible for mobilising residents to attend the meeting.
Oosthuizen said he had done research on the Crime Statistics of Grabouw, estimated to have a total population of 55,000 people, over the past five years.
“I am shocked to see the results, especially as far as contact crimes are concerned,” he said.
Sapa