Cops contribute to GP crime rate

THE booysens and Hillbrow police stations are among the stations that contribute to crime in Gauteng.

This week national police commissioner General Bheki Cele said Gauteng contributed to 50 percent of the crime in the country.

"The officers at these police stations are contributing to crime instead of fighting it," Gauteng Premier Nomvula Mokonyane said.

Gauteng police commissioner Mzwandile Petros yesterday said they had arrested 256 officers on various charges of corruption over the last five months.

Mokonyane said the biggest contributors to crime in the province were an over-concentration of liquor outlets, hijacked buildings and corruption within the police service.

She said the province was looking into reviewing liquor regulations.

"We must review the fact that liquor outlets open seven days a week and for long hours," she said.

"We will also close those that are 500m from public facilities like churches and schools. We understand that they build the economy but they are also causing moral decay."

Mokonyane said new police stations will be built in Dube, Soweto and Tembisa, Ekurhuleni.

"Everton is one of the most under-resourced areas in the province," the premier said. "We will open a community safety centre that will not only have a police station but home affairs and justice departments."