Media Release: Western Cape South African Police Service Management in Disarray

Minister of Community Safety, Alan Winde says urgent intervention is needed in the police’s senior management in the Western Cape. This week’s News24 article (https://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/saps-wars-part-1-the-blurry-blue-line-between-the-cops-and-the-cape-underworld-20190303) highlights that factional battles amongst management are derailing the ability of the police to respond to crime effectively, while the alleged links between the gangs, the ANC and SAPS, paints a grim picture.

Minister Winde said: “A rot has set in and the stench is spreading to all parts of the Province. Our police should be focusing on crime, not stabbing one another in the back. I am also deeply concerned by rumours of ANC interference in our police service. The line between the ANC and SAPS appears to be drawing tighter, when in fact there should be no connection at all. I have seen emails where various SAPS officers in the Western Cape are copied into ANC correspondence.

Given these latest revelations, I will be seeking an urgent meeting with the Minister of Police, Bheki Cele, so that he can inform me about the steps he’s taking, if any, to resolve infighting amongst management of SAPS in the Western Cape.

I have also written to the Western Cape Head of the Independent Police Investigative Directorate to request a progress update into the investigation against Major General Vearey, who appeared to have blatantly lied to get himself off the hook, which is against the police officers code of conduct.

The complaint was lodged on 10 January 2019.

Residents deserve an honest, effective, fully-functioning police service, that does all in its power to eradicate crime and keep communities safe. My big question is, will Minister Cele address any of the issues, as he has already shown that there is no desire to combat crime in the Western Cape, let alone deal with infighting happening at SAPS?

SAPS management should be focused on taking down criminals, not taking down one another. A concerted effort ought to be made to move the 7 murder stations out of the top 10 list, and to address the ten murders a day in our province. The Province, in just one quarter, should not be having over 300 cases struck off the roll, due to among others, dockets not being at court, incomplete investigations or the unavailability of forensic reports.

This once again points to the fact that a decentralised police service is urgently needed, as our aim is to create a #SaferWesternCape for all.