Press Statement by Susan Mathebula, DA Councillor in eMalahleni Local Municipality
DA in eMalahleni visits Vosman Police Station to understand the new crime trends and challenges.
Vosman Police Station is amongst the worst performing stations in the country.
The DA will keep fighting for our police stations to be equipped, enabling police officers to fight crime.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in eMalahleni recently conducted an oversight visit to Vosman Police Station in a bid to obtain an outlook of crime trends, policing challenges, and the growing disconnect between communities and law enforcement.
Forming part of our ongoing commitment to community safety, the DA in eMalahleni is taken aback by the worsening crime situation in Vosman. The 2025-2026 fourth quarter crime statistics (Jan-Mar 2025 to Jan-Mar 2026) reiterated the above, as the Vosman precinct appeared among top 30 worst performing stations in the country for several crimes. This includes:
Sexual offences, with 42 reported cases (29/30),
Assault GBH, with 148 reported cases (30/30),
Robbery with aggravating circumstances, with 130 reported cases (29/30), and
And Robbery at residential premises, with 18 reported cases (6/30).
During our engagement, SAPS officials not only identified how the serious crimes mentioned above are affecting residents in the Vosman area, but more importantly, they exposed how several critical service delivery failures are contributing to crime in the area.
This includes poor street lighting, long uncut grass, illegal dumping, abandoned buildings, damaged roads, and inadequate fencing around grave sites where criminals reportedly hide before targeting residents.
Perhaps most concerning was SAPS confirming that not all crimes are reported by residents, further demonstrating the breakdown in trust and communication between the community and police.
Recognising that this disconnect can only be addressed through stronger partnerships between residents and all relevant stakeholders, we welcome Vosman Police Station’s commitment to undertake sector patrols and support neighbourhood watches, the creation of community WhatsApp groups, a SAPS hotline, awareness campaigns and public Izimbizo engagements.
We welcome these interventions and believe that all councillors have a critical role to play in bridging the gap between the police and communities.
The DA in eMalahleni will not relent; we will continue conducting oversight visits and engaging stakeholders to ensure that the safety concerns of residents are not ignored.