Deputy Speaker, on Friday 22 July five members of the National Intervention Unit, including its commander, and two members of the SA Police Service Air Wing paid the ultimate price in the fight against crime.
The horrific helicopter accident is a stark reminder of the danger that involves the work of our policemen and women in blue. They were dedicated officers. Fighting crime was their passion, and they did so with distinction. Right to the end, these men stayed true to the motto of the police: To protect and to serve. According to eye witnesses, the pilot, a decorated hero, attempted to keep the helicopter in the air to avoid crashing into surrounding houses, thereby avoiding an even bigger tragedy.
It is important that these heroes do not simply become part of statistics. They were somebody's son, husband, brother and father. Their memory should be honoured, not only in remembering them for the service that they did for our country and her people, but it should live on in the honour and commitment with which every man and woman in blue and every law-abiding citizen should stand up and join hands together to stop those who dishonour our country and its history through criminal activities.
We would like to pay tribute to each of these fallen heroes. They were an elite group of officers drafted into the positions that they were because of their dedication, commitment and passion. They were in life and memory, an example to all. We would like to pay our condolences to the family members and friends of these officers, their police colleagues and the SAPS family as a whole.
We know that your loss cannot be described and that words cannot fill the emptiness that they leave. The best way for us to honour their memory is to continue the fight against crime with distinction. May their souls rest in peace. I thank you.