Chronicle EditorWilbrought Ndlovu / Nobukhosi Ndlovu, Sunday News Reporters
POLICE in Bulawayo have advised residents to register their houses with them if they intend travelling outside the city so that the police can constantly monitor the properties to reduce cases of housebreaking.
Speaking at a Press conference on Thursday, Bulawayo provincial police spokesperson Assistant Inspector Nomalanga Msebele said as police they were geared up for the festive season.
“During the festive season many people will be travelling for holidays leaving their homes without anyone to look after or monitor them, we thus encourage the residents to come forward to the police station and register their houses to be guarded by the police during their absence. The police will be patrolling at the location with the registered houses checking if there are no signs of a break-in.
“The registration and patrolling is for free and it is very essential for the residents to register in order to curb incidents of theft while they are on vacation,” she said.
Asst Insp Msebele also urged those leaving their homes for the holidays to desist from posting their whereabouts on social media as criminals can track and take chances since they would be aware that no one is at home.
“Criminals can follow our lives on social media, let us desist from posting our whereabouts and as we go for the holidays, let’s alert our neighbours so that they are aware of our whereabouts and also look out for our homes on our behalf,” she said.
The police spokesperson also emphasised on the need for motorists to exercise caution on the roads to reduce incidents of road carnage.
“Cars have already flooded the city and we find other drivers breaking the road rules. Others are driving through red robots, parking at undesignated places and in other instances you find one car occupying three parking spaces while we have an increased population due to the festive season.
“Speeding is the order of the day as buses and omnibuses are rushing to ferry people to and from the city and that causes them to disregard road rules,” she said.
To curb the accident problem Asst Insp Msebele said they have set up 24-hour roadblocks to maintain order and safety on the roads.
“We have roadblocks along Plumtree Road and Gwanda Road where we aim to create order and ensure that people reach their destinations. We are impounding all unroad-worthy vehicles and all cars that are breaking road rules,” she said.
She advised commuters to co-operate with the police in order to curb road accidents and save lives.
“Let us not board overloaded buses. When a bus is full, do not board, instead board tomorrow or wait for another car. As a passenger report any misdemeanour, if a car is unroadworthy or the drivers are drinking, report on our WhatsApp number which is 0712 800 197 because once you don’t report, lives can get lost along the way,” she said.
The police spokesperson also noted that beer outlets are another problem in Bulawayo especially during the festive season.
She said as the police they are employing measures to close down unregistered beer outlets.
“Most of our murder cases in Bulawayo occur after a beer drink at drinking outlets. People at drinking outlets kill each other over petty issues. Therefore, as the police, we are closing down all the unregistered drinking outlets, and confiscating their products. That way we can curb crime and end drug abuse,” said Asst Insp Msebele.
Online Reporter