The Sinoville police finally have a new commander, who aims to turn around the troubled station that has some residents concerned.
Colonel Gerald Witbooi told Rekord his main mission is to serve the community selflessly and win back the trust of the community.
The station has been without a commander for a month, while residents’ confidence in the Sinoville police has declined.
Witbooi took the baton from Colonel Sello Modise, who retired at the end of March after having served SAPS diligently and with integrity.
The new commander was previously the Boschkop station commander before taking the position at Sinoville SAPS.
He said he would be working to restore the community’s trust in the local police and the demonstration of commitment to achieve excellence through core functions through the engagement with different stakeholders and the community.
“I’m committed to creating a deep service culture across the board to deliver achievable objectives that will enable a secure and safe environment in [the] Sinoville precinct,” said Witbooi.
He said he believes in fairness and is firm in executing his duties.
“We need to ensure crime is addressed in Sinoville. All resources will be redirected based on the crime patterns, analysing crime reported, determining modus, docket analysis and identifying known suspects, then arresting them.
“We need to have integrated crime prevention operations with various stakeholders and have community engagement to strengthen the relationship between Sinoville SAPS and the community.”
Witbooi said the station will have a feedback session on the crime reported and keep the public informed about the status of investigations.
He joined SAPS in 2001 and worked at VIP Static Protection, VIP Protection detail, Directorate of Special Operations, Tactical Response Unit (TRT), and was Vispol relief commander at Atteridgeville and Pretoria Central respectively.
Witbooi hopes to utilise his vast experience at the different units within the Sinoville SAPS.
“I am a straightforward, humble and dedicated person who likes to empower others.
“I am a family-oriented person and like to go fishing to relax my mind. I enjoy riding my motorbike as well.”
Witbooi said he never lost his passion as he worked his way through the ranks.
“Respect, discipline, hard work and dedication are of the utmost importance in the police.
“Discipline is non-negotiable in SAPS and a leader must set the example for his members to follow.”
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