A new station commander has overseen business at the Bothasig Police Station since the end of last year.
Lt Col Jeremy Pieterse, an experienced member of the police with nearly three decades of service, says he was informed about his appointment as new station commander on 2 November last year and a month later, on 1 December, he took up his new post at Bothasig.
Pieterse boasts 28 years’ experience in the South African Police Service.
He was formerly stationed at the Bonnievale Police Station in the Breede River Valley District. Here he also had the role of station commander, a post he filled from December 2020 until November last year.
Station commander welcomed
Asked about his new role and how the experience has been since he started at Bothasig, Pieterse responded saying that he feels positive about the new post as his previous experience in the police plays a big role.
“My career in the police always involved visible policing. As a captain I was a station commander of a smaller police station in Bonnievale, and that already gave me experience in running a police station.
“As from day one at Bothasig I was welcomed with open arms and was accepted very well by the community policing forum (CPF) and the community.
“Although Bothasig police is very short staffed, we still manage to assist each other and work with the community to keep the crime low. I have dedicated personnel that help me fight crime in the area,” Pieterse says.
External role-players vital
He says he looks forward to the partnership between the police and other role-players.
“Currently Bothasig is growing fast with new developments in residential and business areas, which leads to an increase in crime such as property and contact related crimes.
“As station commander I am very privileged to have external role-players such as traffic services, Metro police, law enforcement, armed response companies, the CPF, the Community in Blue initiative, neighbourhood watches and all business forums to assist in combating crime.
“We would not be able to have a low crime rate in this area if it was not for the abovementioned role-players,” Pieterse says.
