Petition launched against Florida police
The Roodepoort Record was informed by numerous sources that all suitable buildings that have been proposed were rejected by the police because they are ‘white owned’.
Ward 70 councillor Caleb Finn launched a petition calling for urgent intervention from Gauteng Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Tommy Mthombeni and Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi at the Florida Police Station.
“We need urgent action to ensure the Florida station has the resources it requires to effectively fight crime in our communities,” says Finn.
“Crime remains a massive problem in our community,” he says. “It impacts the daily lives of our residents. From loss of property to the tragic loss of life, we have seen it all and it has left us traumatised and feeling vulnerable.”
The petition highlights a wide range of serious problems that, according to Finn, have caused the community to lose faith in the Florida police.
Among the problems raised in the petition is the lack of office space for the Florida detectives’ branch, which has been operating out of a temporary one-room structure since 2019.
The Roodepoort Record was informed by numerous sources that all suitable buildings that have been proposed were rejected by the police because they are ‘white owned’.
The Record’s questions about this to the police have gone unanswered.
The petition further highlights severe manpower shortages as well as the lack of operational vehicles at the station.
The Record’s questions to Johannesburg District communications co-ordinator, Lt Colonel Mpho Tshetlane, regarding the number of operational staff and vehicles at the Florida and Roodepoort police stations have also gone unanswered.
Other problems raised in the petition include the lack of police visibility throughout the Florida policing area and the urgent need for an additional policing sector or satellite police station to service Fleurhof.
It laments slow response times by Florida police to emergencies and the constant unavailability of officers to attend crimes scenes, the need for intelligence-driven operations at the Florida Licensing Centre to deal with the crime syndicate that has been operating there for years, and increased action to address illegal mining throughout the Southern regions of the policing area, particularly at Jerusalema and New Canada informal settlements.
It also calls for intelligence-driven operations targeting drug dealers in the area, since the police’s modus operandi of arresting drug users does nothing to cut off the supply into and inside the area.
Click here to add your voice to the petition.
