Petition against White River Police Station gains traction
Two White River associations have started a petition against the White River Police Station.
This was the result of a video going viral on social media, showing a man being assaulted by three men in the police station while the police stood idly by.
Delia Human and her fiancé, Barend Byliefeldt, had allegedly been assaulted in full view of the SAPS inside the White River Police Station after they had rushed to the station in search of a safe place to hide from numerous attackers, following an incident on the road outside White River.
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The Power of 8 000, an association whose name refers to the 8 000 taxpayers in White River, and the White River Ratepayers Association (WRRA) have called for a full audit of the White River Police Station.
“After the incident, the station feels more like a threat than a help,” said Piet Skead of the WRRA.
“This is not the first time we have not been able to rely on our police station.” The petition posted on www.change.org, said, “The police in White River has lost the trust of the community and must be fully audited on all terrains to establish if it still qualifies for its purpose.”
“We as taxpayers are very worried,” said Pierre du Preez of The Power of 8 000. “Are the police our enemy?”
The two organisations hope that an audit of the police station will address all the issues currently facing the police in White River and show how these can be addressed.
Du Preez said the community does not want to take over the police station but currently see no other alternative.
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Both organisations made it clear that they are not siding with either party involved in the incident at the police station which took place on March 27.
“We are only concerned about the poor, unacceptable way there was no proper protocol exercised in the whole unfolding of the event. Our interest is purely the inability of the White River SAPS to handle the situation,” said The Power of 8 000 in a Facebook post.
By the time of going to press, the petition had received 1 062 signatures.
