Nyanga Community Policing Forum (CPF) secretary Bishop Dumisani Qwebe received a service of excellence award at the annual Nyanga Prestigious awards held at the Rockefeller Hotel in Cape Town a fortnight ago.
Mr Qwebe was one of the individuals recognised for working tirelessly towards community growth and against criminal activities.
The awards aimed to honour police officials, reservists and public service employees along with CPF members, who excel and render an exceptional service to the community.
Speaking about the award this week, Mr Qwebe said the award was symbolic of not only his work in Nyanga but of all those who are involved in the fight against crime including the community and the neighbourhood watch of the area.
He praised the unity of stakeholders in Nyanga and hoped it would continue for years to come.
“We need to commend our community too. Yes there is crime but our people are trying to work with us to defeat it. We also work hand in hand with the police and the councillor. That gives us a better chance to fight crime,” he said.
Mr Qwebe said he felt honoured by the police and the community of Nyanga and was grateful for the recognition.
“Fighting crime should be everybody’s business, me included. We are part of this community that is ravaged by crime so there is no point for us to fold our arms while our youths are dying. The awards have made me feel recognised and a part of this beautiful community. This serves as motivation beyond anything else. Other people will also be motivated and get to fight the scourge of crime in our areas.”
Mr Qwebe urged the community to make Nyanga a better place to live and work in.
Nyanga police spokesperson Colonel Wynand Muller spoke highly of the CPF and Nyanga neighbourhood watch.
He said the two are dedicated to the betterment of every individual in Nyanga.
Colonel Muller said working with the community in partnership with the CPF and neighbourhood watch has been a pleasant journey.
“We gave Bishop Qewbe the award for his work ethic and deep involvement with the community. We also gave an award to neighbourhood watch coordinator Chumani Gqamani. They make our work easy by communicating much with the community. Mr Qwebe is also a bishop which makes it easy for the community to respect him. He commands a lot of respect in the community. But both are well respected within the community,” he said.
“It is not easy but I am always up for the challenge.”
Colonel Muller also urged the community to work with police and other stakeholders in the fight against crime.
He said with mutual understanding between the stakeholders, everything is possible. He appealed to the community to behave well this summer and be safe.
