Pretoria - By the end of January the suburb of Akasia will be receiving a boost to its crime and drug-fighting efforts, with the deployment of 100 Drug and Substance Abuse marshals.
Taking a cue from research that found that drug abuse continued to be a common problem in many households across Tshwane, the City’s MMC for Health Rina Marx said she had initiated a programme to boost the City’s efforts in curbing the prevailing drug scourge.
Through the programme supported by the City’s Community Safety cluster, 100 marshals from sectors 1, 2 and 3 in Region 1 of Tshwane began their training in first-aid and security awareness in December.
Marx said the marshals were community members who volunteered their services to counter high crime rates in the Akasia suburb and were subjected to screening for criminal records before being admitted to the programme.
She said as part of efforts to curb drug abuse, the marshals would engage in regular patrols in hotspot areas, especially in the Akasia suburb, which had been negatively affected by drug and substance abuse, particularly among the youth. To target the youth, she said, the marshals were already engaging in initiatives to ensure that schools remained drug-free and safe from those who sought to exploit vulnerable learners.
“Given that the drug and substance abuse marshals are at the front line of the community, patrollers play a critical role and are viewed as the ‘eyes and ears’ of law enforcement.
It is therefore imperative, through the assistance of the City and other stakeholders, that they be capacitated and upskilled accordingly.”
Marx also took the opportunity to encourage other stakeholders to come on board and thanked PPC Limited for donating essentials such as reflector jackets, torches, pepper spray and first-aid kits to the group.
The group would complete their training by the end of January, Marx said.
Pretoria News