Durban - Sam Pillay, the director of the Chatsworth Anti-Drug Forum which does work in various communities, including Phoenix, said the allegations made by a senior Hawks investigator that police officers were colluding with drug bosses "was not surprising".
“This is nothing new. We have been talking about this from 15 years ago. The reason police at the local level do not have much success is because the dealers are often tipped off about raids. And these tip-offs are coming from police officers,” Pillay said.
He said there were many good, hard-working police officers that were not on the take.
"But those that are corrupt are making a bad name for everyone and are responsible for the drug epidemic. It’s for this reason that we no longer believe we can stop the supply of drugs in our communities and fighting the drug bosses because it is unwinnable with all the corruption. What we are now concentrating on is educating the youth in the hope they won't take up drugs," he said.
IOL sent national Hawks spokesperson Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi detailed media enquiry last week. This week he said he was still waiting for responses to questions posed by his colleagues in Durban. At the time of publishing, none had been received.