There was never a satellite police station at Illovu Township, nor a request made for one. That’s the response from police spokesman, Colonel Jay Naicker to a media query regarding why the Illovu SAPS satellite station, which was refurbished by funding from local churches and completed in September 2012 at a cost of about R70,000, continues to lie vacant.
“There is no official satellite at Illovu,” said Col Naicker. “There was never a request received for a satellite station in the area. If a request was received, a feasibility study would have been conducted. If the satellite was then approved, resources would have been allocated to the satellite.”
The station, which was a police reservist camp years ago, was badly vandalised and it took three months to revamp the interior and sewage infrastructure. It is ideally situated on the R603 to police one of the area’s main exit points and service KwaMakhutha, Illovo, Illovu and Winklespruit.
At a Community Police Forum (CPF) meeting in April 2013, Toti station comander, Col Den Mkhize said 13 staff members had been deployed to man this station, however, 12 months later the station is still standing empty.
In July 2013 Col Mkhize reported that, prior to his appointment as station commander in Toti in February 2011, land had been donated by local indunas for a satellite police station at Kwashozi, near KwaMakhutha. This was in response to why the Illovu station was not being utilised.
According to the colonel, as the distance between these two satellite stations was only two kilometres, it was not feasible to use the Illovu base. However, when sector forum spokesman, Louise Marais measured the distance and found it to be about six kilometres.
More than three years later, there is no sign of the Kwashozi satellite station being built. “According to the cluster commander, no donation was made to the SAPS in this regard in accordance with our official donation procedure,” said Col Naicker.
“I am speechless as to where Col Naicker is getting his information from,” said Louise. “This was an operating police station for many years, so I’m not sure what a feasibility study has to do with a station that was not new.
It’s common knowledge the station was operational in the past. Why would the community spend all that money to refurbish it? I can’t believe a police media spokesman doesn’t know anything about it and it’s ridiculous he made a statement like that without investigating.”
I am so sick and tired of the publics criticism regarding toti police station. You are not police officers nor do you know police protocols. Get your facts straight. All you do is criticize the police but walk on their shoes a day and see if you can manage what they encounter daily . Then on top of that have to read and hear how useless they are and then you wander why so many members are leaving the police. You have demoralised the toti saps with your tunnel vision that you cant even recognise the good results they do have. Shame on you!!!!