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The definition of a Community Police Forum (CPF) is a forum established in terms of section 19(1) of the S.A.P. S. Act, Act 68 of 1995 i.e. a CPF is a group of people from different communities and police representatives who meet to discuss safety problems in their communities. A CPF also aims at ensuring police accountability, transparency and effectiveness in the community. It is therefore imperative that every CPF remain true to the purpose of its establishment and ensure all crime and safety related concerns from the community be at the crux of each and every CPF meeting.
Residents are very conscious of the surge in crime in their suburbs and have where possible they have taken precautions in the form of social media alerts, subscribing to armed response private security, installing safety features around their homes and various other forms of preventative measures. I think communities in general should be commended on their pro-active approach in trying to beat this scourge of crime. The measures taken by residents does not detract from the vision of our SAPS which is to create a safe and secure environment for all the people in South Africa. It doesn’t matter where we live, as a community we must continue using the CPF as a platform for working towards seeking solutions and also ensuring that SAPS is accountable, transparent and effective in their policing role of combatting crime and ensuring a safe and secure community.
The negative impact of crime unfortunately is not a subject of high spirited discussion. It is therefore expected that the discussions at CPF meetings does comprise largely of complaints, grievances and sometimes the negative public perception regarding the obligations of SAPS. However, without community participation at this forum, it will be ineffective. As a resident in a community, I urge everyone who wants to work towards a crime-free suburb to attend the CPF meetings so your voices can be heard, and working together with SAPS a way forward can be defined !
