More than 400 vehicles join AfriForum mass patrol in Western and Eastern Cape, covering more than 5 600 km

This past weekend, AfriForum’s community safety structures in the Western and Eastern Cape collaborated with other safety stakeholders to conduct a mass patrol involving 401 vehicles, covering a total of 5 610 kilometres and dealing with 19 separate incidents. The mass patrol, which ran from Friday afternoon (24 July) until the early hours of Saturday (25 July), formed part of a large-scale AfriForum safety operation involving the organisation’s neighbourhood and farm watches across the country.

In the Western and Eastern Cape, 505 AfriForum neighbourhood watch members participated in the mass patrol alongside 300 stakeholders, including members from the South African Police Service (SAPS), local traffic police services, and law enforcement authorities.

Marthinus Erasmus, AfriForum’s District Coordinator for the Southern Cape, believes this joint operation and the successes achieved during the operation highlight the value of cooperation between AfriForum’s neighbourhood watches, law enforcement agencies, and local safety structures. “Operations like these not only have a general deterrent effect on criminals but also serve as a valuable tool in preventing opportunistic crimes such as burglaries and vehicle theft,” Erasmus explains.

In the Southern Cape, AfriForum’s Oudtshoorn neighbourhood watch, in collaboration with local law enforcement, removed several trespassers from private properties. Additionally, a suspect found in possession of suspected stolen goods was apprehended on the grounds of a local school, thanks to effective communication and coordination between the AfriForum neighbourhood watch and a security company.

Meanwhile, AfriForum’s Bellville neighbourhood watch conducted a contingency plan exercise alongside officials from the City of Cape Town Metropolitan Municipality. During the exercise, three different crime scenarios were simulated: vehicle and church burglaries, as well as vehicle hijackings. AfriForum’s panic button app was also successfully tested during the exercise, eliciting an immediate response from the AfriForum control room.

In the Eastern Cape, AfriForum’s neighbourhood watches hosted a safety network workshop to further improve cooperation, communication, and coordination among safety structures in the region. AfriForum’s Walker Drive and Colchester neighbourhood watches also conducted show-of-force operations to increase visibility.

“The success of this mass patrol confirms once again that organised communities, in collaboration with law enforcement agencies and other stakeholders, can create a safer community for everyone through simple actions like patrols. We thank every volunteer and partner who made their time and resources available to make this initiative a success,” Erasmus concluded.

AfriForum encourages communities to get involved with their local neighbourhood watches and work together to create safer communities. Click here for more information and to join your local AfriForum neighbourhood watch.