Victims of gang violence on the crime-ridden Cape Flats broke down in tears on Tuesday as they related their experiences to Deputy President Jacob Zuma.
Zuma was visiting the area, along with Safety and Security Minister Charles Nqakulu and senior police officials, as part of the government’s moral regeneration campaign.
He hugged a sobbing Mary Petersen as she recounted how her six-year-old grandchild Tyrone was killed in gang crossfire in the yard of her Ravensmead home.
”Help me, help me… what did I do to them. I’m a community worker, I do such good for the people,” she said.
”I never harmed a person, why did they hurt my child. He was just playing, that’s all. I see my child every day; I can’t sleep.”
Also in tears was Margaret Fray whose 12-year-old niece Candice Louw was abducted and found dead two days later in a sewer, raped and savagely mutilated.
Zuma told the families that he found their stories very painful. The police were attempting to deal with crime but it was clear that the Cape Flats needed an extraordinary effort.
”I’m convinced we need to do something extra,” he said.
Introducing acting provincial police commissioner Andre Pruis to the families, Nqakulu told them one of the reasons he was brought down from Pretoria was because of his operational experience and the police’s concern about crime on the Cape Flats.
”We are committed to ensuring your safety and security,” he said.
Commending the families for speaking out, he said ”they will empower us to go after the very people who have committed these crimes against them. We appreciate their courage”.
On Monday, Nqakulu announced that the Western Cape had been allocated more than 6 000 police recruits and additional resources to combat gang violence. – Sapa