Police officers reach out to Oakdene retired police officer
“It felt wonderful to be honoured for my service as an ex-officer. It was exciting and they then wrote a story for the SAPS’ internal communication and I received lots of phone calls after that."
Much to his surprise, a retired police officer’s 80th birthday did not go unnoticed by the men in blue.
In honour of his milestone birthday, retired WO Sham Singh received a visit from police members on July 9.
This follows the announcement of his birthday on Facebook which moved Col Paulus van Eeden and Const Mohammed Jeena from Johannesburg SAPS Central to pay the Oakdene senior a visit.
They took it upon themselves to go beyond the call of duty and surprised the retired officer with a gift and their time.
According to van Eeden, they were simply moved by the years of service he dedicated to the force.
“We were in the area working and after getting hold of him, we decided to pay him a visit. We wished him a happy birthday in the spirit of the moment and paid our respect to him on his special day. On the day, he also gave us tips on policing and some basic advice,” he said.
Van Eeden also said officers are normally only recognised when they die and that they wanted to change that stigma.
“When we came across the post I actually asked my partner to verify if he was still alive and we realised he still was. “That was what mostly moved us, that he was still alive and that we could still pay tribute to him unlike if he had passed on,” he said.
Devoted to serve
Singh had been an officer for most of his life and served as an officer for at least 28 years and has been married for 42 years.
Before becoming the first Indian appointed station commander at Lenasia SAPS, he had worked for numerous police stations. He then decided to down tools in 1990.
During his time as an officer, Singh had always applied the motto ‘to protect and to serve’. His wife described him as a kind and helpful person who is willing to go an extra mile and changing lives.
Singh thanked and commended the officers for their act of kindness.
“It felt wonderful to be honoured for my service as an ex-officer. It was exciting and they then wrote a story for the SAPS’ internal communication and I received lots of phone calls after that.”
He advised current officers to dedicate their service with heart and humility.
“Those days we worked genuinely, and upon joining the force we were told that were servants of the public. Police officers are there to serve communities and not become big shots,” he said.
