Primrose Police Station in need of resources to better serve public

The Primrose Police Station desperately needs resources so it can better serve Primrose residents.

The station has severe resource shortages, leaving officers struggling to serve the community.

Residents have raised concerns about delayed response times, the lack of police visibility and poor service at the station, all of which they attribute to the station’s need for more personnel, vehicles and essential equipment.

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The Primrose CPF wrote to the province requesting urgent intervention to support the Primrose SAPS.

Primrose CPF chairperson Tracy Enslin said the station is not coping, “Our station needs upgrading.

“This station was here when Primrose only had about 40 000 people. Since then, the town has grown, and we have three massive informal settlements.

“Primrose is now home to 250 000 to 300 000 people, yet our police station is getting smaller and less equipped. This puts a strain on officers,” said Tracy.

Community members complain that when they report crimes, the police often arrive late or not at all because there are too few vehicles to cover the area.

She said the station needs:

• four vans – one per sector because the area has three sectors and one for informal settlements.

• Vispol staff (Visible Policing) – two officers per van per shift, three members in the Community Service Centre, and a duty officer per shift.

“So, we need at least 12 to 15 members per shift, the minimum required. A head of detectives is needed, and three to four detectives to handle the caseload.

“When you walk into any of our detective’s offices at the moment, their desks are piled high with dockets.

“One person investigating more than 50 to 100 cases at one time is impossible. Some detectives have more than 100 cases,” explained Enslin.

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“Radios are needed in the vans or handheld ones for our SAPS members on duty. A Jojo tank is needed because when there is no water, the SAPS must transfer suspects to other stations, which takes vans out of the area and is risky.

“We are a full colonel station, yet we only have two colonels currently and a staff shortage of about 25 members,” said Enslin.

She said this is demoralising to the officers.

“The working conditions are frustrating and demoralising. The station doesn’t have the tools to do its job properly.

“They are short on manpower, and the few vehicles available are already stretched. Officers want to serve the community but are set up for failure,” she said.

The Germiston City News sent an enquiry to Gauteng police spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Mavela Masondo on February 19 regarding the lack of resources in the station. No comment was received.

Enslin said the Primrose Police Station risks becoming another example of a struggling law enforcement system failing the people it should protect without urgent intervention.