Still no decision on cop station

ALMOST a year after police had been offered a piece of land in crime-hit Vrygrond, near Muizenberg, where a police station can be built, police had still not made a decision whether or not to take up the City of Cape Town on its offer.

The chairperson of sub-council 19, Felicity Purchase, said the offer had been made to police management in June last year.

“It was at the time they were looking for an alternative place to house the police officers and staff of the Muizenberg police station while it was being upgraded,” Purchase said.

It had since emerged that the original plan to upgrade the Muizenberg police station was changed to include vast extensions to the tune of R100 million, which would have required large-scale excavation of the mountain side.

But while Police Minister Fikile Mbalula and his deputy, Bongani Mkongi, have both publicly denounced the R100m price tag for the station, the national Department of Public Works – which would apparently fund the project – said it had not been told to scrap it.

On a visit to Cape Town on Tuesday, Mbalula said he had discussed the matter with acting national police commissioner Kgomotso Phahlane. “We are attending to that matter and under our watch we will not approve that,” Mbalula said.

“We will not agree that R100m be spent on a police station upgrade when we could use the money to do other things.”

Police spokesperson Sally de Beer said police top brass and Public Works were still to meet over the debacle. “As reported less than a week ago, the police will engage relevant stakeholders and role-players; this is a process and engagement is taking place.”

She would not comment on the piece of land in Vrygrond, which had been made available by the City of Cape Town for a police station.

“To this day they (police) have not done a thing,” Purchase said. “There are several reasons why the city has made the land available in Vrygrond; first, because the Muizenberg police station is too far and inaccessible for Vrygrond residents.

“Also, most crime comes from the Vrygrond area, and third, because the Muizenberg police station is on top of a hill, it is practically inaccessible for physically disabled people.” –