MOSSEL BAY NEWS - A Garden Route satellite office for the Western Cape Police Ombudsman (WCPO) was officially launched at the Mossel Bay Joint Operations Centre (JOC) on Wednesday 12 August, allowing residents and visitors access to an independent platform on which concerns about service delivery from the South African Police Service can be raised and addressed.
According to the Mossel Bay Municipality, this new satellite office forms part of ongoing efforts to make the ombudsman’s services more accessible and responsive to communities across the province.
“While the WCPO has operated from a shared office within the JOC since August 2022, this launch marks the establishment of the first dedicated satellite office serving the Garden Route region,” said the municipality.
Speaking at Wednesday’s launch, the municipality’s portfolio chairperson for community services, Cllr Leon van Dyk, emphasised the importance of accountability and collaboration in public safety.
“We are all striving not only to offer good service, but also to be accountable and remediate potential problems,” he said.
The WCPO’s aim is to address and investigate inefficiencies in police services as an independent and impartial entity, by providing residents, tourists, organisations and community stakeholders an avenue through which concerns can be lodged.
Complaints may be submitted by members of the public, including foreign nationals and visitors, members of the Provincial Parliament, organised civil society structures, and government departments or organisations.
The Garden Route satellite office will work in tandem with an already established network of provincial and municipal safety partners, housed within the Mossel Bay JOC.
Other role players operating from the facility include the Western Cape Liquor Authority, Police Oversight and Community Safety, Provincial Traffic, the District Disaster Management Centre and the Rhino Action Group.
Van Dyk highlighted the value of these partnerships in creating safer communities and supporting long-term development, adding that effective safety initiatives are fundamental to broader social and economic growth.
“Safety is everyone’s business. Without stability, there is no economic growth nor vision to achieve,” he said.
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