NEWS RELEASE 9 December 2004

LOCK IT OR LOSE IT – TAKE THE ADVICE OF THE CAPE TOWN CITY POLICE

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Look after it or lose it. That’s the message from the City Police as muggers and petty thieves get ready to take as much as they can in the festive season.

To counter this perennial threat, the City Police have launched the Lock it or Lose It campaign to urge shoppers and others entering parking lots and arcades to take care and be on the lookout.

The campaign, launched in Draper Square, Claremont, on Thursday 9 December, will involve City Police in distributing pamphlets at traffic lights, warning people what to look out for and how to secure their possessions at this time of year.

Safety tips will also be displayed on boards and handed out at strategic places, such as shopping malls and arcades.

As part of the City of Cape Town’s Safer Cities Programme, the Lock It or Lose It campaign will put the initiative in the hands of the motorist and shopper to make sure that they take all the right precautions.

Councillor David Erleigh, the City of Cape Town’s Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, said the Safer Cities Programme was aimed at protecting citizens from the abuse of others on the roads, parking areas and elsewhere.

He added, “As the Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, I am committed to support this CBD as I have done with all the others. I am, once again, inviting the private sector to get involved in this area so that it can be a pleasant and safe area for shopping.

“We are confronting criminals to protect the great majority of local citizens and visitors who are law abiding,” he said.

“This is not an aggressive campaign, but more an attempt to encourage people to do the right thing by locking their valuables in their boots, especially at this time of year.”

By working together with the SAPS and other law enforcement agencies, the City Police have made a big improvement to the lives of all communities by assisting schools and local organizations and the community in the fight against crime.

“They are fully integrating themselves and are being accepted by the communities they serve. We are proud of them,” Councillor Erleigh said.

LOCK IT OR LOSE IT – TAKE THE ADVICE OF THE CAPE TOWN CITY POLICE

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ENDS

Issued by Rosemary Hare Public Relations cc

P O Box 12521

MILL STREET

8010

On behalf of The City of Cape Town

Private Bag X9181

CAPE TOWN

8000

For further information, please contact Lisa Hayward at Rosemary Hare Public Relations on (021) 531-2166 or 082 579 3793.

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