Cape Town - The City’s new Law Enforcement Deputy Chief, Jason Hamilton, said he joined the police when he noticed that his community, Manenberg, was on a downward spiral.
After joining law enforcement as principal inspector in 2012, Hamilton’s promotion was announced yesterday.
He started as a security officer after matriculating in 1996 and then worked on contract for the Department of Correctional Services in 1997 until he joined SAPS in October 1998.
The father of three said it was his desire to assist to make communities safer. “The policing environment is ever-changing and as a manager, I will need to adapt, especially to technology and data analysis to assist in addressing crime. I am a positive and optimistic individual and I thrive on turning my low points around.
“I always wanted to be in law enforcement, to make a positive contribution and assist in making our communities safer,” Hamilton said.
Safety and security mayco member JP Smith said: “Deputy chief Hamilton is an innovator and has started many programmes and projects within law enforcement that are still active, such as the Neighbourhood Safety Teams and the Law Enforcement Auxiliary programme.
“In December 2019, he bagged the Safety and Security Directorate’s Officer of the Year award. Hamilton is looking forward to his new role. Hamilton has proven himself to be a committed officer intent making a difference in the communities he serves. I know he will bring that dedication and enthusiasm to his new role.”
Hamilton said he would park his car next to a drug dealer’s home and bar youngsters from entering.
“The outcry from the community and parents of children caught up in crime and drugs, I had to step in and try to assist in ridding our communities of this.
“There was a house close to where I lived, where I used to stand with my private car and chase the people visiting the drug dealer away because I just had to do something.”
Hamilton’s appointment comes as residents on the Cape Flats live gripped in fear as ongoing gang warfare has claimed scores of innocent lives.
Vernon Visagie, from theManenberg Community Policing (CPF) Vernon Visagie said he hopes Hamilton will help combat crime in the area.
“We hope the new deputy chief will come to the area and encourage youngsters to get off drugs and also not get into gangsterism.
“We are happy that one of our own has reached that level.”
The GOOD Party’s Suzette Little called for a sober reassessment of the plans to fight crime as residents cannot continue to live in war zones.
“This must include addressing the root causes of crime such as lack of amenities, disparities in services and infrastructure, high levels of youth unemployment and under-investment by the City to address these prevailing and obvious socio-economic drivers of crime on the Cape Flats.”
Asked about his plans of policing war zones, Hamilton said: “We need the community to join the fight and acknowledge their assistance. We need to revive our NGOs and community neighbourhood watches to encourage ownership in communities.
“I am co-ordinating forces on the Cape Flats including Ottery in terms of hot spot policing principles,. Although it is an effective way of policing, it sometimes comes with its challenges where you have too many shootings around Cape Town and all communities are in need of enforcement.”
mandilakhe.tshwete@inl.co.za
Cape Argus