Brigadier Sammy Thambo has been named as the new station commander of the Douglasdale Police Station and brings nearly 38 years of experience to the role.
Beginning his police career in 1980, Thambo says he was inspired to enter the police force because of his brother.
“As a child, I would visit [my older brother] on the weekends at the police barracks where he was staying, and I would see the other officers all the time. One day I tried on a police hat, looked at myself in the mirror and decided that I looked better than they did!”
Thambo took up his position on 2 October and says that so far the job has been going well and that he is happy that the Douglasdale officers who he leads are so committed to public service.
Throughout his nearly 38-year career, Thambo has worked in stations across the country, including as a police instructor, a firearms trainer teaching officers how to safely handle their weapons, in the Brits licensing office and has even been station commander at the Germiston Police Station in the East Rand.
Before he was assigned to Douglasdale, he had been at the Division Human Resource Development at the police head office in Pretoria.
When asked what the biggest challenges are that face police work, Thambo brought up the issue of police killings.
“The killings can’t just stop, but our officers do have a safety strategy that they are familiar with.
“Another challenge is the growth of population in station areas.”
Thambo is looking forward to becoming more familiar with the Douglasdale area during the course of his work and wants to work towards bringing better service to members of the community.
“I want to say to the community: we [the police and the community] must really work together to fight crime.
In terms of what I’d like to achieve, I want to win the community’s trust and confidence. The police are not involved with the criminals, and I strongly believe that politics and police work shouldn’t mix.”
Thambo also wants to encourage the community to become more involved in safety efforts and encourages residents to join their local Community Policing Forums and neighbourhood watches so that crime can be beaten. Informers who wish to notify police of crimes about to be committed are also welcome to approach the station.
“Without the community, we can’t win against crime. They are our eyes and ears on the ground,” Thambo concluded.
