30 May 2019

The success of the police to fight crime depends on witness and informants’ information hence it is important that they be protected.

Speaking at District No. 15 Botswana Police cluster awards ceremony in Tutume recently, MP for Nkange, Mr Edwin Batshu said many were reluctant to share information with the police because they fear putting their lives at risk.

He said a concern was raised in one of his kgotla meetings that police frequented the homes of informers arousing curiosity of neighbours while some officers would go to the extent of revealing that an investigation was a result of a tip-off.

Once such is mentioned, Mr Batshu said, it alerted the culprits of who might have sold them out.

Mr Batshu challenged the police to improve the way investigations were conducted, especially where informants were involved in order to build trust between them and the community.

Crime prevention committees he noted, were introduced to build good working relations with communities.

“Crime is committed by some members of the community and to fight it requires other community members’ input,” stated Mr Batshu.

He however, commended the police together with cluster policing committees for reduction  of crime in the constituency.

Mr Batshu said offences such as house break-ins which in 2016 stood at 130 cases went down in 2017 to 103 and 65 last year.

Tutume Sub-district council, district officer administration, Mr Kabelo Tshekiso said fighting crime should be dealt with from the family level with parents involving children on matters involving crime prevention.

Mr Tshekiso said nowadays young people are at the fore front in criminal activities  and  part of criminal syndicates.

He asked parents not to shy away from reporting their children involved in criminal activities and appealed to dikgosi as custodians of cluster committees to urge public officers to join the committees.

ENDs