Police officers who are not doing their jobs and laugh at people when cases are reported will face disciplinary action, warned Limpopo Police Commissioner General Simon Mpembe. He spoke during an imbizo held in Thohoyandou this week to listen to problems the local community experiences.

Despite the Thohoyandou police station's being one of the best-resourced stations, crime statistics continue to escalate and the number of unresolved crimes continues unabated. This is causing unhappiness within the community. Members of the Indian community, specifically, reckon they are victims of the crime sprees and the number of robberies and housebreakings in the Thohoyandou and Sibasa areas are just escalating.

These complaints, as well as a number of others, prompted the police to host an imbizo to give all stakeholders the chance to speak about their challenges and to give input as to what could be done to make the level of crime decline in the area.

Issues raised by members of the community included the handling of cases where people complained that police are not updating them about the progress of their cases. Some blamed the police as being in cahoots with criminals, which makes it difficult for them to investigate cases. There were also allegations that police were sometimes reluctant to arrest some criminals. The police were also blamed for not attending to complaints in time, with the excuse that there are no drivers at stations.

In reply, General Simon Mpembe said they had heard the cries of the people and that was the reason why they haddecided to come and spend the day there, with a view to seeing how to deal with these to the satisfaction of everyone. Mpembe said he had learnt with dismay that some members of the community went to the police station and left without getting assistance.

He warned police officers not giving service to the community to change or face dismissal. He told the community that the police had an obligation to serve their communities and that if the community was unhappy about the level of service they were getting, they should feel free to visit the station commissioner.

"Our members have name tags. If you feel you were not treated well, please report the particular member to the station commissioner. If the member has no name tag, report that as it is misconduct," he said. He urged police officers to listen to the complaints of the community and not to laugh at people coming to report cases.

Mpembe encouraged the community to interact with their sector managers for efficient service. He also urged them not to keep silent when they see crime happening in their communities. He warned them against buying stolen goods, saying they were giving criminals a market to sell their stolen property. "As police, we are committed to ridding our communities of crime, and to show our determination, we have employed the best fingerprint experts who can also draw identikits that could help in crime investigations. Please give the police your impressions about suspects and this will help in the reduction of crime," he said.