Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police (Divisional Commander North) Dinah Marathe has appealed to communities in around Maun to be extra vigilant as the festive season approaches.
Marathe said there is a likelihood of accidents, as well increased movement of people in Maun, as many people will be visiting the tourism town. She said Maun has proven to be a very busy area, with a lot of activity, which is why they have even increased police visibility.
Although thin on the ground, she said they have allocated police vehicles to the 28 police stations and to some of the 250 police posts in the North region.
Marathe told journalists last week that Maun is unique as there are many entertainment spots and places of interest where people throng.
She said the Botswana Police Services (BPS) has observed that there is excess alcohol consumption in Maun, which calls for immediate stern measures. Besides alcohol, she said they have also observed that rape cases have spiraled, as compared to other areas.
“This is a societal problem. We have realised that even school going children are exposed to love relationships, such that they become sexually active at a very young age. As police, we are not winning because of some people who prefer not to report rape or defilement cases. However, because of the many children born to underage girls, we have collaborated with hospitals so that they report such incidents, soon after there would have been delivery of such babies,” she said.
The divisional commander spoke of a significant reduction of other crimes such as stock theft and house breaking, even though there has been an increase in murder cases.
In 2012, some 21 cases of murder were reported, 18 in 2013 while 24 have been reported from January 2014 to date.
She said there have been a number of accidents, mainly along the road connecting Maun and Ghanzi, where pedestrians and driver conduct is very poor.
“Let us approach this action-packed period together with a view that most companies will be closed for December, which therefore means there might be uncontrolled movement of people, coupled with uncontrolled behaviours. Let us be in this together so that we may smile at our achievements,” she said.
Maun police is the headquarters has jurisdiction over five districts, covering areas from Gweta to Seronga.
