City neighbourhood watch zooms in on crime prevention

23 March 2021

Neighbourhood Watch (NHW) groups patrolled Ocean View on Friday evening, joined by Cape Town Executive Mayor Dan Plato and Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, Alderman JP Smith along with City Law Enforcement officers and South African Police Service (SAPS) members.  Now in its seventh week, the Neighbourhood Watch support visits have been to various areas across the City to offer ways to assist these community-based groups and encourage community participation.

In Ocean View, patrol activities focused on visibility and mobilising members of the community to join the various NHW groups active in the area. Mayor Dan Plato and Alderman JP Smith approached residents during the patrol to encourage them to join patrols. Mayor Plato was also joined by local ward councillors.
 
Three NHW groups: Sevens, Maisonetts and Hungry Hills were part of the walkabout through different parts of Ocean View.

‘My pride in this community is what motivates me to be part of the NHW. We can help keep people safe when they walk in this neighbourhood. Our challenges are robbery, keeping women safe in the mornings and evenings,’ said Jackie Philander, Chairperson of the Sevens NHW. 
 
‘I want my young son to grow up in a safe community and that is my motivation to be part of the NHW. We can make a difference in our communities and that is one of the reasons I am studying safety and society at False Bay College,’ said Simone Liebenberg, another NHW member.
 
Cape Town Executive Mayor Dan Plato said increased community involvement in NHW groups can assist greatly in crime prevention, along with City law enforcement agencies and national SAPS.

‘These NHW members are doing vital crime prevention efforts in their community and we are here to support this. This is a known gang-affected area and I must commend these community members for standing up and doing their part to make their community safer. While we know SAPS have not been given the necessary resources from national government, I am very glad that they have put in the effort to join the community as we patrol this evening. It shows our collective commitment, with our Law Enforcement and even our Traffic Services here tonight as we join hands with the community. Regardless of our differences, we are all united with our message: Down with gangsterism. We want to see a safe Ocean View. I was disappointed that some political opportunists sought to disrupt this community walkabout and showed complete disrespect for the NHW members, but thankfully the political opportunists left after they had filmed their propaganda and we could continue with those residents who care for their community,’ said Executive Mayor Dan Plato.
 
City NHW groups have been active for more than a decade and have seen encouraging growth, with thousands of members now playing a vital role in crime prevention efforts within their respective communities.
 
‘It is a great to see how the NHWs in Ocean View are making use of the CCTV cameras that the City installed after previous flare ups of gang violence. They are taking responsibility for co-monitoring these cameras with the City to ensure they are utilised effectively to prevent crime, assist in making arrests and also leading to the confiscation of illegal firearms,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security Alderman JP Smith.

 
The public can anonymously report any suspicious activity to the Public Emergency Communication Centre on 021 480 7700 from a cellphone, or 107 from a landline. Complaints of non-compliance with Covid-19 regulations can be directed to the City’s compliance hotline on 021 444 3582.

Although the Law Enforcement department’s main functions are by-law enforcement and addressing traffic violations, they are playing an increasingly broader role in joining the local communities to prevent crime.

Neighbourhood watch members can also become members of the Volunteer Law Enforcement Auxiliary Service (LEAS). In 2013, the Safety and Security Directorate launched LEAS, with prospective volunteers encouraged to first join their local neighbourhood watch before being recruited as a LEAS volunteer.

Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office