THE South African Policing Union would like to join millions of South Africans in commending and saluting the 23 Bafana Bafana players who have been selected to represent the country in the 2010 Fifa World Cup.

The union (Sapu) is proud of these players and they make us all proud too.

Though some people believe that as a police union we should concentrate on crowd control and stability, our role goes beyond policing.

Sapu believes that criminals will always take advantage of any situation to carry out their illegal activities and crime is a socioeconomic challenge.

So human activities such as sport definitely plays a meaningful role in combating these challenges.

To add to what National Commissioner General Bheki Cele has said, the thousands of men and women in blue are more than ready for the world. We call on Bafana not to worry about the tsotsis. They must just enjoy what they know best - football - and we police officers will take care of the criminals.

Sapu would also like to commend the five other players who, because of Fifa regulations, were left out. The fact that they came close to representing their country proves they deserve to play for the national team. It is not the end of the world.

There is still the 2012 African Cup of Nations and the 2014 Fifa World Cup in Brazil. Once again Sapu, with millions of South Africans says: Go Bafana, go! We are with you all the way.

Make us proud.

Joseph Vusumzi Matam, Pretoria