James said the petition was going well, however, they needed more Midrand residents to sign it. This after the revelation that Midrand Police Station is under resourced and is need of 108 police officers to function at its best capacity.
Sue Klingenberg, treasurer of the association, said they took on this initiative in order to help the police combat crime in the area.
Station commander Colonel Steven Moodley, admitted that the station was under resourced. However, he said they were using all the resources available to them, including working with community policing forums and security companies.
“Although, [these entities cannot perform all the duties that the police perform], they can act as our eyes and ears,” he said. He added that every other Midrand resident can do so too.
True to their word, on 12 September, members of the VVRA were out at the Vorna Valley Spar, explaining the objectives of the petition to residents and getting their all-important signatures. James said, “We want 10 sector vehicles driving around all day, more staff at the counter, detectives, constables, sergeants and more staff answering emergency calls.
“Crime is on the increase and without adequate human resources our dedicated members in blue will always be on the back foot.”
Resident, Mbuso Radebe, was pleased with the initiative and believed that it would bring about change. “More police on our streets means less crime,” said Radebe.
On the day, the association collected over 350 signatures. These will join the 300 signatures that James had already handed over to Andy Mashaile, chairperson of Gauteng Provincial Community Police Board, on 3 June this year.
At the AGM, the association also announced that they were registered as a non-profit organisation this year. Although the AGM was attended by no more than 50 people, they expressed their desire to be supported by the greater Vorna Valley community.
The association’s previous executive committee was also retained with a unanimous vote, which includes Marianne Nel, Klingenberg, Carol Thornton, Hein de Kock and Carol Barnes.
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