By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Police Minister Bheki Cele visited the distressed community of Riverlea, west of Johannesburg, in the aftermath of violent protests that sparked the area.
He visited the area with national commissioner Fanie Masemola following the death of an innocent civilian last week and the discovery of five bodies believed to be zama zamas at the weekend.
Cele said external forces will be brought in to deal with the long-standing issue of zama zamas in the area.
A war between two feuding factions has intensified over the past month, leaving community members fearing for their lives.
Residents had barricaded roads to complain about zama zamas (illegal miners), who regularly exchanged fire in clashes related to illegal mining activities.
They have demanded the government’s immediate intervention, saying they live in constant fear due to the constant ringing of gunshots in their neighbourhood.
Cele has promised a response to the community’s concerns within 24 hours.
He promised the immediate deployment of the Tactical Response Team (TRT), also known as the ‘Amaberethe’, to flush out the criminals.
“There are amaberethe that we are leaving here, but that’s not the end. We’ll reinforce them. We need to find these guys where they are. We need to flush them out of their holes and make sure they know not to interfere with the community.
This was not the first time the police minister had responded with similar intervention in a community plagued by violent crime.
However, residents say they are do not believe the Minister’s “empty words,” as he’s made similar promises to residents of Westbury as well as Diepsloot.
Last month, the community of Diepsloot protested over the growing number of robberies and murders in the area, while lamenting the police’s commitment and capacity to deal with the problem.
In 2022, the minister deployed resources, which included members of the TRT, detectives and vehicles, to the area. However, community leaders – who were demanding the audience of President Cyril Ramaphosa while calling for a permanent solution to their service delivery woes – said not much had changed since then.
Cele also made the same promises to the communities of Pimvillle and Kliptown last year, following the shooting death of Kgomotso Diale at the Chicken Farm informal settlement.