00:00With Diwali just a few days away, members of the St. Mary's Police Community Council and officers of the St. Mary's Police Post decided to incorporate the festivities with their outreach efforts with residents.
00:13On Thursday night, officers carried out a roadblock exercise, but instead of sharing out tickets to offending drivers, they distributed Diwali treats.
00:23So we would have come together, put resources out, and we had a little creative twist today tonight, so we would have stopped vehicles, vehicles who would have thought it was a roadblock, and we would have given back to the community in the form of sweets and meals, and just trying to bridge that gap between the stereotypes that the community has of the officers.
00:45Secretary of the Police Community Council, Anissa Khan Mohamed, says the area has been depressed due to heinous acts of violence and crime in recent years, and with the donations from businesses in the area and the support of the police officers, this idea came alive.
01:02For the past year or so, we have been downtrodden by a lot of crime and criminal activities.
01:09What the St. Mary's Police Community Council, along with the St. Mary's Police Post, has endeavored to do is to take back the community by implementing different initiatives that would bring a smile to the face of the residents, as well as do things that would bring them together.
01:24A main factor driving Thursday's initiative, she says, is the need to build a better relationship between police officers and residents.
01:33And through more underground engagements like this, it is their hope to improve that partnership.
01:39The perception that a lot of residents have of the police right now, and that is not just in this community, but nationwide, may not be a very positive one.
01:50So we want to reinforce those things, as you can see, we have officers in the background, and they continue to go above and beyond.
01:57And we need the residents to know that and to be able to put their trust in the officers again.
02:02Cindy Raguba, Tika Singh, TV6 News.
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