Moving memorial for Alex police officer
Gauteng police mourned the loss of their colleague Lt Col Morne Maritz at a moving memorial ceremony at the Alexandra Police Station on 14 January 2015.
Gauteng police mourned the loss of their colleague, Lieutenant Colonel Morne Maritz, at a moving memorial ceremony held at the Alexandra Police Station on 14 January, with his cremation the following day.
Maritz (44) died on 10 January from a gunshot wound to the head, which was suspected to have been self-inflicted. Provincial police spokesperson Lt Col Lungelo Dlamini said no foul played was suspected. Maritz was found dead by his wife.
The acting station commander, Colonel Nhluvuko Zondi described Maritz, who was head of the detective unit, as an irreplaceable person with immense policing and administrative skills.
“He had an illustrious career, was selfless and taught the rank and file officers and his seniors on the intricacies of policing and crime-recording work. He, unfortunately, died a day before he could achieve 23 years in service,” Zondi said.
The head of visible policing, Colonel Johannes Tau, lauded Maritz as a model officer whose character, conduct and commitment to duty were second to none and should be emulated by all.
“He led from the front and still had more to offer in helping stabilise crime in Alex,” said Tau, who also urged the police to engage in more team-building exercises to help them bond and share personal challenges which could lead some of them to commit suicide.
Dorothy Sithole of the South African Police Union said Maritz needed to be honoured for sacrificing quality time with his family in preference for securing society. Sithole said guns in police hands were tools to use to safeguard the public and not to commit suicide. “The police service management should create a conducive work environment for the police whose mandate is to tackle crime engulfing society.” She urged police to make use of the Employee Wellness Programme effectively whenever they experienced personal challenges.
The chairperson of the Alex Community Police Forum, Benjamin Chisare, praised Maritz for his humble and humane demeanour which he said should be a yardstick for police conduct in order to gain community trust and co-operation. Chisare urged police in distress to also rely on spiritual intervention in case of problems.
