Johannesburg - The Gauteng Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Community Safety has called for the deployment of additional law enforcement officers in Westbury, amid rising levels of shootings and violence in the area.
This comes after 13 people have been shot since Friday, and the latest victim was reportedly shot while outside a friend’s home on Monday, two of whom succumbed to the fatal shootings.
The committee has been outspoken in its opposition to the situation in the area, urging that it be addressed before more lives are lost.
The committee chairperson, Bandile Masuku, said: "The community of Westbury should no longer live in fear but enjoy their Constitutional right to feel safe and secure in their neighbourhood."
The committee said that earlier this month, it wrote to the Provincial Police Commissioner, Lieutenant-General Elias Mawela, urging that policing services be enhanced in Westbury and surrounding communities like Eldorado Park. According to the committee, Mawela assured it of the Gauteng Anti-Gang Unit’s full-time deployment in Westbury to get a handle on widespread violence.
Further, the committee summoned the management of the Sophiatown police station to appear before it and account for plans to fight violence and crime in the area.
"Evidently, these efforts have not yielded positive results as the area continues to suffer unbearable levels of crime and violence; thus, the committee now calls for immediate intervention by provincial law enforcement agencies to restore safety and security in the area," Masuku said.
The Star