In an effort to fight crime differently, a spiritual crime prevention programme was launched at Christian Fellowship Church in Nomzamo on Saturday 16 July.
The programme, which involves the religious fraternity, traditional healers, neighbourhood watch and the local community policing forum, will tackle social issues such as drugs and disoriented family structures.
The programme is designed to assist police in fighting crime in Lwandle and the surrounding areas.
Through the programme, church members will be taught new ways of fighting crime.
Clad in different church and traditional regalia those who attended the launch sang and danced in unison.
Loyiso Marubelela, deputy chair of spiritual crime prevention, told City Vision they needed to tackle crime spiritually. He promised they will be visible in communities and will also embark on numerous programmes including marches and mass prayers to conscientious society.
“We know crime affects everyone, whether you are young or old. As the spiritual crime prevention we call on our community to unite against this devil, called crime,” he said.
Marubelela said if united as the community they can defeat crime. “We will be working with different groups that form part of this community. So, we will be praying and asking for God’s intervention to help us get rid of crime,” he said.
Nomawabo Qotoyi, a traditional healer, said they also wanted to be part of the solution. “In our area we see a lot of people being killed, which was something foreign to us. So, as traditional healers we will also be calling on our ancestors and pray to the Almighty to help in fight of this scourge,” she said.
Qotoyi said she believed the ancestors will hear their cries and help them defeat crime in the area of Strand.
Maj Gen Vincent Dyantyi, acting Khayelitsha Cluster Commander, said as the country struggled to get rid of crime, they have opted to fight it differently.
“We have been lacking in ensuring safety of our communities, and it is now time we seek divine intervention. We can’t fight crime alone as police and we need all different parties of our communities to come on board as well,” he said.
Dyantyi said issues of murder, robbery, and gender based-violence (GBV) were prevalent in the area and the community needed to stand up and face crime head on.
He added that crime was not created by animals but by human beings in the same community.
