"Together we can defeat crime." This was the key message of hope by Limpopo’s MEC for Safety, Security and Liaison, Samson Ndou, during his consultative visit to the Mutale Municipality last week.

The MEC met with the mayor, Cllr Lucas Manyuha, Chief Vuzidzhena Nethengwe and Thengwe traditional leaders. The highly fruitful meeting took place at the Thengwe Tribal Authority building.

Ndou said there is a need to consult the leadership of the communities because the government alone cannot win the war against crime. "Communities understand their local leadership better than political office bearers whom they do not even know physically. We want the immediate community leaders to send a message to their subordinates that there is nothing good in committing crime. There is no way we can defeat crime if we do not come together and fight for a common cause. Communities need to be aware that they also have a role to play in making their environment a better place to live."

Ndou says community involvement is the only thing that can reduce crime to zero. "We need to compliment each other but the community has a major role to play in the war against crime. We can draw up plans and come up with strategies in our offices, but if the community is not well informed, we will never succeed. We must work tirelessly with different stakeholders, including the police, clergy and businesspeople, to eradicate crime in our society."

The mayor of Mutale Municipality, Cllr Lucas Manyuha, said: "Our municipality supports a crime-free environment and we will do our utmost to make Mutale a better place to stay, invest and visit. Our crime prevention strategy fits well with the vision of the MEC and we will always be part of the army that strives to eradicate crime."

Chief Vuzidzhena Nethengwe said traditional leaders are always ready to work with different stakeholders to bring peace. "We are also going to play a central role because we know that our people are victims of crime day in and day out. We would like to issue a warning to criminals that they must know that they do not have room here at Thengwe."