Norwood Police Station, Lifeline and Norwood’s Community Policing Forum (CPF) joined hands and hosted an initiative to address homelessness and social ills in the community on January 12.
Norwood Police Station commander, Colonel Logan Govender said hosting the initiative was an eye-opener for the SAPS.
“Such initiatives make you realise how rife homelessness is in the community. As SAPS, only worry about patrolling the streets 24/7 we will continue to arrest suspects and deal with the symptoms of ongoing social ills.”
He added that if SAPS continue having such initiatives and engages with the community in terms of social crime prevention, SAPS can get to the root cause of the problem and get to the stage where the homeless change their lives for the better.
A disadvantaged community member, Thukela Nkalitshana said he was in attendance because he believed the initiative would help him change his life.
“Being in a room full of stakeholders is the right step to getting help and addressing the issues we face as homeless people.”
Norwood’s Community Policing Forum (CPF) Sector 4 chairperson Cebi Ngqinambi highlighted to community members that the initiative aimed to address the growing and concerning number of homeless and unemployed people in the community.
“The initiative being hosted today is to encourage people to speak up about their problems to the police and other relevant stakeholders who are involved in the community.”
Lifeline supervisor, Doreen Moagi concluded that the empowerment programme assists and supports victims of crime through emotional support and is in the space of empowering victims.
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