11 May 2020

Police have extended their operation along the Thamalakane River following an increase in movement of people who visit the river to appreciate and celebrate the coming of annual floods.

Water finally arrived at the river in the early hours on May 9 and some residents could not be patient as they were seen the same day claiming to welcome the water flow at the area commonly known as Boro/Thamalakane junction.

In an interview, station commander, Superintendent Chenamo Orateng confirmed that they had dispatched a team of law enforcement officers to patrol the river as they were disturbed by a lot of movement by people despite the fact that the country was still observing extreme social distancing and safety protocols.

Currently, he said they had charged 12 people for visiting the river without permits and were all fined money not exceeding P5 000 for violating the extreme social distancing regulations.

Supt. Orateng thus appealed to residents to stay home and remain patient until the lockdown regulations had been lifted.

He said flocking the river would undermine government’s efforts to control the COVID-19 pandemic.

“It seems the coming of the water has attracted a lot of attention and people must remember that flocking the river poses high risk of spreading the virus,” Supt. Orateng said. ENDS