Theatre doyennes Smal Ndaba and Phillis Klotz spent hours at OR Tambo police station after an accident involving a police vehicle

By Phyllis Klotz

An afternoon and early evening spent in O.R Tambo Police Station.

On Monday 21st February I arrived from Cape Town and stood patiently outside the arrivals hall at O.R Tambo International Airport waiting for Bra Smal to collect me. My flight was half an hour early so I stood watching all the comings and goings with interest unexpectedly I hear my name being called I turned to see a distressed Smal calling me and telling me he had had an accident.

I saw he was not hurt and was relieved. We went to the scene of the accident which had taken place virtually outside the O.R. Tambo police station. A young policeman had opened his car door without thinking and smashed into Smals’ car which was virtually stationary.

Those of you who are familiar with arrivals at the airport will know the approach is narrow and traffic moves slowly. The police Captain in charge immediately informed us that there were certain protocols to follow as a state vehicle was involved. Understandable. Surprisingly the Duty Line Officer and the state photographer arrived about 20 minutes after the accident and had concluded their business by 3pm. Smal went into the charge office to make a statement.

Half an hour later he had not appeared I called him he said the Captain was waiting for someone to sign off on the statement. Fifteen minutes go by I decide to go into the police station and see what’s happening. I find the Captain, Smal and a policewoman in a poky office.

The Captain accuses Smal of being drunk an absolute fabrication then turns to me and says I can see you have been drinking, I was shocked as I am a virtual teetotaler and had no part in the accident -so why is he accusing me? My hackles begin to rise and I become slightly aggressive Smal asks me please to keep it cool, he feels being difficult will only exacerbate the situation.

We request breathalyzers none are available at the station. The Captain contacts the Metro police to come and deal with the situation as he fears reprisals higher up if he does not follow up on the liquor allegations fabricated by him. The young Metro policeman arrives without a breathalyzer, his partner has gone off with it and is now off duty.

The Captain asks him to assess if Smal is drunk the Metro policemen says no and informs the Captain if wants to take it further we must go to Tembisa hospital for a blood test, however he feels it would be a waste of resources. We flatly refuse to go to Tembisa. The Metro policemen departs on the understanding he will go and get a breathalyzer.

I’m beginning to feel as though Smal and I are in some kind of Kafkaesque nightmare. It’s now 5 o’clock haven’t eaten or drunk since eight that morning I can see Smal visibly collapsing his hands cupping his head. The Captain refuses to sign the statement. All we want is the statement to be signed and a case number for an insurance claim. I ask for water the policewoman brings us two glasses, the Captain says Smal cannot drink as this will dilute the liquor level in his blood when he has his test. This state of affairs continues for nearly another hour with the Captain making all sorts of comments about why he cannot sign off on the statement.

At about 5.50 pm the Captain suddenly begins to hurriedly clear his desk and departs at 6pm. We are told to wait for the new shift officer in charge to review our case. Time ticks by we are waiting eventually the officer calls us into her office. She informs us that neither the Line Duty Officer or the Photographer have signed off. Our hearts sink –what does this mean? Smal needs to sign a warning statement. Nevertheless, she will sign off on Smal’s statement and we can go. She will send the case number within the hour – which she does.

After 5 hours we leave the police station exhausted. Trying to make sense of all of the above. Did the Captain want a bribe? Did he feel bad because he was the one to order the young policemen to move the car? Did he want to give Smal a hard time so that he would not make a statement against the police officer? The car was extensively damaged on the passenger’s side over R80.000 damage. Did he think Smal would not follow the correct channels in order for him to get a case number and have a legitimate insurance claim?

.Small Ndab and Phillis Klotz are founders of theatre institution Sibikwa in Benoni. They are now retired.