DA Petition results in Construction of Police Station in Leondale
Joint Media Statement by Cllr. Kade Guerreiro and Cllr. Alta de Beer — DA Ward and PR Councillor in Ekurhuleni
Date: 20 March 2023
Release: Immediate
Type: Media Statement
After almost 5 years of waiting, the Democratic Alliance (DA) in Ekurhuleni is proud to announce that the community of Leondale will finally be receiving their much-needed SAPS police station.
The construction of the police station follows the hearing of a petition submitted by the DA in parliament.
In March 2019, the DA ran a petition on behalf of the community Leondale as a result of the increase in crime and slow response times of the Alberton SAPS in the area. The increased population in the area, lack of police capacity and resources, and the subsequent increase of crime rates, left residents waiting for hours on end for police to respond.
It was therefore incumbent on the DA to take the safety concerns of the residents of Leondale to Parliament. Now, the DA petition was finally heard in Parliament after it was submitted by DA Member of Parliament, Michele Clarke, almost 5 years ago. On the 1st of March 2023, Councillor Alta de Beer and then PR Councillor for the area Cllr. Kade Guerreiro, had an opportunity to motivate to Parliament why the community of Leondale should receive a police station. The information provided included amongst other things, the distance of the community to neighbouring police stations, the average time it took for police to respond to crime reports from the Leondale area, the population size, size of the area, and the crime information/ trends in the area.
The councillors provided a compelling case and were delighted when they were informed that their request had been approved by Parliament and that after years of fighting, the people of Leondale would finally get a police station in their area.
The following information was provided with regards to the construction of the police station:
1. ERF 5846 Roodekop, Extension 23 had been identified as available land for the new Police station.
2. Department of Public Works and infrastructure development was contacted to transfer the allocated land from department of Education for the new station.
3. The Police station is 26th on the revised Gauteng user asset management plan.
4. For the interim a satellite SAPS (mobile community service centre) has been provided under the Alberton Station to assist during the interim period, which as of March 2022 located in Phumula.
5. Currently one sector van has been provided but an additional sector vehicle was requested by Cllr. De Beer and was granted due to population and area size.
In the DA’s vision of an Open Opportunity Society for All, children are safe from harm and citizens are able to walk in our cities and townships without fear. Criminals are caught promptly and prosecuted speedily, and victims of crime receive appropriate support and are treated with compassion. Citizens are respectful of the law and understand the consequences of violating it. Communities are confident that those prosecuted will be punished and will be given opportunities to atone for their actions.
This is the kind of society that we envision for the community of Leondale and every other community across the City of Ekurhuleni.
Cllr. Kade Guerreiro
DA Ward Councillor in Ekurhuleni
071 899 8646
Cllr. Alta de Beer
DA PR Councillor in Ekurhuleni
082 777 1406
