Lwandle police officers have been beefed up with 16 new police personnel to serve the surrounding communities.
The officers arrived in the area on Monday 11 July and were welcomed by the Lwandle Community Policing Forum (CPF). They have been transferred from different police stations.
With the ongoing population growth of the area, the CPF believes the numbers are going to make some dent in dealing with crime in the neighbourhood.
Lwandle is at number 27 on the top 30 murder stations across the country.
In the fourth quarter (January to March) 2022 Lwandle recorded 29 murders, 13 more compared to the same period last year (2021).
Lwandle CPF chair Siyabonga Macaula said they welcome the increase as this was long overdue.
“We believe crime has really increased in our area and these 16 additional officers will make an impact even if it’s not enough. As Lwandle, we know the area has grown a lot, with many backyarders and informal settlements,” he said.
Macaula said they have been concerned as the area did not get any replacements when members left the station.
“We still hope for more police because the ratios per police is still very high. The last allocation of police in Lwandle was one police servicing over 600 people as per 2011 census,” he said.
Station Commander Col Xolani Williams said his wish is to see the additional officers working hard to fight crime in the area.
“These officers come from different stations such as Strand and Grabouw but they are familiar with this area. Our (mission) is to fight crime and ensure the community of Lwandle and surrounding areas feel safe,” he said.
