Johannesburg - "Gang violence will not stop just because (police) Minister Bheki Cele came here today. It is not the first time that Cele has come to Westbury."
These are the words of one of the residents of the area who spoke on condition of anonymity following Cele’s visit to the area on Thursday.
"I still have pictures from his last visit to the area in 2018. He came here and landed in a helicopter, but gang-related violence and drug peddling by protected criminals continued."
Cele, who visited the Sophiatown police station to get a briefing on crime prevention efforts in the area, promised to intensify his efforts in dealing with the myriad of criminal issues in the area.
Cele’s visit comes after the community witnessed yet another eruption of gang-related violence following the gunning down of Keenen Sheldon Ebrahim, who was reportedly the "Fast Guns" gang leader.
He was shot and killed on February 23, and there are reports that the resurgence of a spate of shootings has seen more than 11 people become victims of gun-wielding gangs in the past week.
According to police reports, six separate shooting incidents, which have claimed two lives and resulted in the injuries of 11 others, were confirmed this past week.
Some members of the community described the minister’s latest visit as yet another publicity stunt that will not resolve the issues affecting ordinary citizens of this country due to the alleged involvement of police in protecting criminals, including drug lords and gang members, in the area.
"Great promises about vehicles and horses have been made, and absolutely nothing has changed. Yet, we are being terrorised as a community. There is an absolute failure of government, and it is a failure not only at the police level but at an economic level, at a social development level, and a failure of us as a society to get together, get to grips, and say, how is it that we can rescue our future generation and stop the violence and the madness that is happening?" Ronald Harris, who is a PR councillor, said.
A mother who lost her son to gun violence just over four months ago said she, too, was not convinced that Cele’s visit would yield any positive outcomes for the many mourning mothers who have lost their children in the area.
"I am not convinced that his visit will help us in any way. I am still waiting for the police to update me on the murder of my son last year. Four months later, the police have not opened a case that would result in the arrest of my son’s killers," the mother said.
A former gang member who served time in prison for his involvement in gang-related crimes recently told The Star that the issues in the area are both systematic and socio-political.
"Gangs are not new in this area. There have always been gangs, but there seems to be one gang that has existed throughout the many decades of gangsterism in the area, and that gang, my friend, is the Fast Guns Gang. It has always been there, and whenever a new gang rises, Fast Guns crushes them. This gang has always enjoyed protection, and they run this area. They want to be the only ones who eat, and they make sure that they take you out of business, whether it’s the drug business or the liquor business; this gang is at the centre of everything happening around here," he said.
Another member of the community who runs a taxi-related business said he is saddened by the gang culture that continues to recruit young boys into gang-related crimes.
"These young boys, some of them as young as 13, 14, and 15, are given guns and R500 to shoot and kill people. To them, because they do not know any better, it is big money. They go ahead and do it, and for me, this thing will never end as a result of children being turned into hired killers by older people," he said.
The Star spoke to various community members who have alleged police involvement in protecting, aiding and abetting gang-related crime in the area.
Cele said community members raised their issues, with allegations of police involvement in aiding criminals and drug dealers in the area.
"The community has raised that some of us, as the police, are not really covering themselves in glory in terms of working with the criminals. We have structures. As the police, we have the secretariat and, we have the Ipid (Independent Police Investigative Directorate), and such cases will be taken up by the Ipid. It is a painful thing when you arrest members of the police, but if they put themselves in that position, we will have to do it," Cele said.
The Star