Dan Fuphe

Dan Fuphe

When President Thabo Mbeki opened parliament in 2005 he identified Daveyton as one of the places in the country where contact crimes such as rape and domestic violence were rampant.

The Daveyton police station, as one of the client service centres, has decided to do something about the situation.

At the weekend Senior Superintendent Mahwiti Thomas Maupa told scores of local people, including children who converged at the Usizolwethu Special School for the Walk Against Women and Children Abuse Campaign, that since 2005 this perception had changed drastically.

"After the announcement by the president, we immediately embarked on a plan to remedy the situation," Maupa said. "But, regrettably, our plan was aimed at arresting perpetrators and excluded the much-needed involvement of the community."

Maupa said they had come to realise that for any plan to work it has to involve the masses.

He called on local businessmen and religious groups to join hands with the police to stamp out crime in the area.

"It is sad to see that out of about 200 churches in Daveyton, only four work with the police," he said.

Gauteng head of social crime prevention Senior Superintendent Linda Gqomfa, the guest speaker, had those present in stitches with her hilarious stories about her kinsmen from the former Transkei in Eastern Cape.

On a more serious note Gqomfa appealed to parents and children to stop the now common practice of sleeping over at a friend's house.

"Remember that when you sleep over at your friend's home the only person you really know is the friend," Gqomfa said. "His or her brothers, uncles and other relatives might turn out to be a scoundrel or even a potential rapist."

Local Community Police Forum chairman Sipho Ledwaba bemoaned the fact that though the Daveyton police station boasted a victim empowerment centre the facility remained under-resourced and under-utilised.