Pretoria – Gauteng Premier David Makhura has pledged that police will work tirelessly to ensure that justice is served in cases where children are killed.
The Premier visited Reiger Park in Ekurhuleni on Monday to share government’s plans to make the area safer.
He was accompanied by Community Safety MEC Sizakele Nkosi-Malobane and Gauteng Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Lesetja Mothiba.
The Premier’s delegation met with families whose children have recently fallen victim to violent crimes. The delegation briefed the families on the status of the investigations into the children's deaths.
These include three-year-old Cuburne Lavone van Wyk, whose body was found burnt in a mine dump in August. His alleged killer Nathaniel Katlego Mpoku appeared in the Boksburg Magistrate's Court on October 31. The case was postponed to December 10.
The Premier also met with the family of Taegrin Morris, who was killed during a hijacking in July.
The Boksburg Magistrate's Court withdrew the charges against Thamsanqa Twala, who had been accused of involvement in the hijacking. This sparked outrage in the community.
The delegation also visited the family of 10-year-old Siphamandla Madikane of Ramaphosa settlement. Madikane’s half-naked body was found by a passer-by in a mine dump in November last year.
Premier Makhura said justice will be served.
"Child killers will be brought to book and will face the law," he said.
He then proceeded to the local community hall to address a public meeting where he urged the community to join hands with government to bring the perpetrators of crime to book.
He announced that a multi-disciplinary team will work with the Reiger Park community to deal with various issues plaguing the area in the East Rand.
Given the similarities in the Madikane and Van Wyk cases, the Premier also announced that police are investigating possible links between the two.
During the meeting, community members reported various issues to the team, including drug dealing, tavern operating hours in the area, the functioning of clinics and taxi violence.
16 Days
Meanwhile, President Jacob Zuma will today officially launch the 16 Days of Activism for No Violence against Women and Children Campaign in Reiger Park.
16 Days is an international campaign observed from 25 November to 10 December to raise awareness of the negative impact that violence has on women, children and society.
This year’s campaign will be held under the theme “Count Me In. Together moving a non-violent South Africa forward”.
The campaign aims to provide a platform to engage all stakeholders across race, gender, age and other divides to commit to collectively fight this scourge in society and to revisit the available strategies to end violence against women and children. - SAnews.gov.za
