Police officers dedicate their lives to pursuing the ends of justice. At times, putting their very lives in danger to protect law-abiding citizens.
As police officers are often willing to sacrifice their lives for the innocent, they too often become targets for villainous fiends. It is because of this that September is Police Saftey Month. A month which sees police stations take an active stand in raising awareness about the dangers SAPS officers face on a daily basis.
“For the 2017/2018 financial year, 58 police officers were killed nationally. Out of these, a total of 29 police officers were killed in the line of duty,” explains Newcastle SAPS Communications Liason, Captain Jabulani Ncube.
While these figures are frightening, Captain Ncube claims there are no incidents locally during the same time period. However, Captain Ncube says it is of the utmost importance to ensure police killings come to an end.
To create awareness about police killings, the SAPS hosted a march on Wednesday, September 26. “We officially opened Police Safety Month in Dannhauser. Today, we close the month with a march in Newcastle. The 11 stations which form part of the Amajuba Cluster are in attendance.”
Also read: SAPS to march against child trafficking and police murders
The march began at Newcastle Police Station, making its way through the CBD and Taxi Rank. Pamphlets education people on police killings distributed,
Members of the Community Policing Forum (CPF) and other Non-Profit Organisations, such as SANCA joined the march.
“This forms part of the National call to bring police killings to an end,” emphasises Captain Ncube.
Going out to the community, the Newcastle SAPS are ensuring residents know how important it is to stop police killings. Without them in society, criminals will run rampant.
Also read: Local Police officials receive awards at National SAPS medal parade
