One of the store owners in town explained they don’t get any assistance from the police, as they often get robbed. He alleges even after they report the incident, the police take their own time to get to the store and by the time they arrive, the people breaking in, would have already left. He strongly believes that the community has assisted in reducing the rate of crime in the town.

"Cases often are not solved and we never get any feedback. We do not get that much assistance from the police. When we call requesting help, they say they do not have vans and they will only be able to come when the vans are available. By the time they come, the robbers have already taken what they wanted."

OFM News previously reported irate residents of Qibing, Wepener, outside Bloemfontein in the Free State have come out in their numbers to support nine suspects accused of murder and defeating the ends of justice. Mapaseka Hlutyana told OFM News that the community is outside the Magistrate's Court to support the suspects as the crime was not committed by the suspects alone, but together as a community. She alleges that the police have been failing to assist with the growing rate of crime in the town. Hlutyana alleges that every time the community goes to the police to report a crime, they are told to go to the community, thus the suspects did what they did. She stated if the suspects are to be arrested, the entire community should be arrested; if not, they will reveal the names of the policemen who told them to go to the community for assistance.

OFM News will give the police an opportunity to respond to the community's allegations.

OFM News