Gauteng should not be a gangster’s paradise: Mawela

VANDERBIJLPARK. – Recently appointed Gauteng Provincial Commissioner (PC) of the South African Police Service (SAPS), Lieutenant General Elias Mawela said that Vanderbijlpark is one of the crime hot spots in Gauteng. This was during his recent visit to the area. Mawela said that Bophelong is the main generator of crime in the area due to the mushrooming of liquor outlets, ‘which are more than schools’. He also revealed thatGauteng is accounting for half of the crime in South Africa. “I am not impressed by these statistics. It cannot be allowed that Gauteng contributes about 50% of crime,” Mawela said. Mawela went to the Bophelong Satellite Police Station and the Vanderbijlpark Police Station before he went to Quest Conference Centre where he inteacted with stakeholders, the community and local SAPS management. This was his first official visit to the area after his appointment, following in the footsteps of former Gauteng Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant General Deliwe De Lange.
“There should be no gangster’s paradise in Gauteng, not on my watch. I will sit with leaders to tackle organised crime. We can’t create a comfort zone for criminals,” Mawela said.