“At the station, she has been an asset and a champion of service delivery.”
Those were words of appreciation by the Khayelitsha Police Station Commander Brig Mnoneleli Magobiyane, to a departing Col Nerine Brooks.
Brooks, who hails from Belhar, has been with the South African Police Service (Saps) for 35 years, 17 of which were spent serving the community of Khayelitsha.
At the age of 55, she decided to leave the service and will now be spending time with her family.
During a farewell function held at the Khayelitsha Police Station on Wednesday 1 February, Magobiyane hailed Brooks as a “disciplined officer”.
Magobiyane told City Vision that Brooks spent her time working at visible policing, specialising in exhibit management, making operational plans, supporting environment and handling complaints against the service.
“On several occasions, her area was commended by the Inspection Team and Provincial Team. We will miss her service, her punctuality and her willingness to go the extra mile,” he said.
Magobiyane described Brooks as a respectful officer to both her seniors and juniors. He said she also took pride in mentoring the young members.
Speaking to City Vision, Brooks said she had “mixed emotions”.
“I had made the decision sometime ago, that when I reach 55 years of age I will retire. I have seen a lot of people die in front of me, or those that retire only live a few years,” she said.
“This was not an easy decision because Khayelitsha had been my home for 17 years. There’s something about Khayelitsha, let alone the crime, and sometimes I would drive scared, but you need to be there to feel it,” said Brooks, a mother of three children.
Brooks said she was “grateful to God” for keeping her safe all these years. She believes the drills they went through while training as a police officer in 1988, made them and her peers “respect” the service and the country.
“It is disheartening to read in the media about police misbehaving and I always tell the young upcoming police to continue with what they learned at the training academy,” she said.
Brooks, who now has a four-days-old grandchild, said she will “take a breather and chill”.
“Police take you away from your family for the longest time. Now, I will focus my time on being a mother, a wife and a grandmother as God planned this very well,” she said.