BY MBONO MDLULI
MBABANE – Community police officers should avoid drinking too much alcohol, especially when they are in line of duty.
This is important because the work done by community police officers is important because it ensures safety of people in Tinkhundla and chiefdom levels. This advice was shared by Sindi Ndlovu, who works for the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) Crime Prevention Department in the Shiselweni Region. She said this during a meeting the Shiselweni police officers had with residents of Mbangweni, under Shiselweni II Constituency. The purpose of the meeting was to look at ways of fighting crime in Mbangweni and ultimately, the entire Shiselweni Region.
Speaking to Eswatini TV, Ndlovu said community police officers dealt with crucial information that would be useful when a suspect was being prosecuted. She said such a person was supposed to be able to keep such information confidential, especially when it was supposed to be presented before court. The Shiselweni police officers also advised the community police officers to consider patrolling in their communities at night to reduce the rate of crime, which seemed to gain momentum at night.
She also advised that the nation should be cooperative when using the roads. She advised against alerting one another about the presence of traffic police officers on the road. This habit, according to Ndlovu, disturbed the police, as they did their work of restoring order. Ndlovu said such a thing could be dangerous because a person being alerted about the police presence could be one of the most wanted people for crimes such as murder.
Shiselweni II Member of Parliament (MP) Bhekithemba Bhembe praised the move by REPS. Speaking to Eswatini TV, Bhembe said such an effort was a step in the right direction. This move, according to the legislator, strengthened relations between the police and the nation. He said such relations were crucial if the nation wanted to reduce crime in the country.
In summary, the call for community police officers to moderate their alcohol intake is part of a broader strategy to enhance public safety and strengthen community-police relations in Eswatini.
