Police officer, Beulah Siyaya, explains that they saw it fit to host the prayer session for all women in blue at the Welkom Police Station. The prayer session over the weekend came days before the Minister of Police, Bheki Cele, admitted shortfalls in service delivery by the police in the country due to staff shortages, amongst other issues. Cele also revealed that about 10 000 women in the country have been raped in the three months of the first quarter of this financial year.

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He was speaking at the dual launch of the Free State Provincial Government’s Operation Phetisa and the SAPS’s Operation Phetisa Molao, where about 100 police vehicles were delivered to improve service delivery in the province. "The SAPS is this year supposed to celebrate hundred years of existence, however, these hundred years include over fifty years of women being excluded from the police service. Therefore, I took a decision not to celebrate this milestone because women were marginalised and excluded for half a century,” said Cele. He mentioned that 50% of the women who were raped in the country, were raped in their houses.

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At the prayer session held at Lewende Water Church Street, Seemeeupark, Siyaya started by praying for women and social ills such gender-based violence, femicide, and domestic violence, because it is a few of the big issues that the police services deal with.

Free State MEC of Police, Roads and Transport, William Bulwane previously left the police stations in Odendaalsrus with dissatisfaction of the state they were in. One of the challenges that the police officers in the police station were faced with is the toilets that do not operate. To make use of a restroom, they have to walk or take the one police vehicle they have at the station to go to the garage.

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