SAPS and businesses work together
Six sectors will soon have established sub committees and WhatsApp groups to interact with police.
Business representatives attended a meeting at the Springs Police Station to establish a SAPS/business security committee on Wednesday.
These representatives were from New Era, Enstra, Fulcrum, Nuffield, N17 Hospital, down town Springs and Geduld.
Springs CPF chairman, Mike du Toit, says the purpose of the committee is to talk to each other and to the police.
“Communication is an important word.
“Through communication businesses can gather information and pass it on to the police,” he says.
He suggests every sector to have their own committee which will then meet with the Springs CPF once a month.
“It is vital to set up a business WhatsApp group to communicate with all businesses in the area,” says du Toit.
He emphasised the importance of the establishment of business WhatsApp groups, especially during wage negotiation strikes.
“Through these groups information can be shared with other businesses, as well as with the police, on strikes and crime in the area,” he says.
Du Toit says Community Police Forums (CPF) contacts should also be added to the group.
“The CPF are sub-forums in the neighbourhood which operate in a slightly different way dependent on the nature of, and culture, prevalent in the neighbourhood.
Capt Jan Nel, manager of Sector One and Two, says sector managers of these seven areas should also be added to the WhatsApp group.
He reiterated the importance of the WhatsApp groups.
“We need two administrators who should manage the group so that is only used for emergency information and not to exchange recipes,” says Nel.
He also asked the representatives not to put complaints on the group App, but to rather contact the sector manager.
“I want to emphasise these are not emergency numbers, if you have an emergency contact 10111 or 112,” he says.
Ben van Greuning, from Element Six in Nuffield, says they are almost at the end of their three year wage negotiations cycle.
He agrees with du Toit that they should call meetings with the police on strike updates and various other crimes.
Nel is also the sector manager for the Springs Mall, which is a sector on its own.
