Lieutenant Colonel Anton van der Berg, in the middle, with his colleagues, back from left, Constable Angelique Booys, administrator Zandile Boyce, Sergeant Rene Wally, Sergeant Nozipho Maduna, Sergeant Samantha Kersouw, and administrator Silvia Nkile. Front: Sergeant Sybil Swartz and administrator Leroy Wicomb.
Pinelands police chief Lieutenant Colonel Anton van der Berg is retiring at the end of the month after almost 40 years in the police.
Lieutenant Colonel van der Berg, of Parow, did his training at the police academy in Pretoria in 1987. He has been at Pinelands police station for 37 years, four of those as station commander.
Lieutenant Colonel Van der Berg said the positive attitude of the community and station staff in tackling crime in the precinct was what he relished most about his job although it had also been hard trying to make do with limited resources as Pinelands was considered a relatively small police station.
The Pinelands Neighbourhood Watch held a retirement party for Lieutenant Colonel van der Berg at Pinelands Club on Friday March 8.
“He will be missed. He always provided good advice on any matters of concern in the community, and he kept a good balance when working with the neighbourhood and the different organisations,” said watch chairperson Heidi Ebrahim.
Lieutenant Colonel van der Berg said he would miss all his colleagues. “You become a family as you generally spend more time with your colleagues than your actual family,” he said.
The new Pinelands police chief will start at the beginning of May.