Cape Town - "We are losing the war against crime and criminals are running around freely."
This is according to Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Mmusi Maimane who was speaking to the Western Cape crime-fighting unit in the gang-ridden community of Bonteheuwel on Monday.
Maimane said It is unsustainable that "we" depend on the army and Neighbourhood Safety Team.
"It is going to be important for the SA Police Service to be professionalised and provincialised so that we can ensure that those gangsters end up in jail and citizens can live freely," he said.
"We need a partnership between National, Provincial and City governments, so I support the deployment of SANDF to our communities," Maimane said.
He said we cannot as a country continue to live in a world where gangs are attacking our communities and drugs are ravaging our young people. "Enough is enough," Maimane said.
"As South Africans, we need to be aware that we are engaged in a war against crime," Maimane said, and has passed condolences to the police officer who was murdered in Delft over the weekend and speedy recovery to the two officers who got shot.
Mmusi Maimane said we cannot as a country continue to live in a world where gangs are attacking our communities and drugs are ravaging our young people. Video: Sisonke Mlamla/Cape Argus
He said many communities across the Western Cape are under constant attack from gangsters, and a state of lawlessness has taken over the streets in these areas.
"The single biggest reason for this is the under-resourcing and under-capacitating of SAPS stations. This crisis has reached a point where the Western Cape government has decided to approach the courts in order to compel national government to deploy sufficient police resources," Maimane said.
Bonteheuwel councillor Angus McKenzie provided details on some of the interventions made by the Western Cape Government and the City of Cape Town in the fight against crime.
McKenzie said: "We have been able to establish a very strong Neighborhood Watch Team, equipped and trained them to deal with crime in the area."
Community Safety MEC Albert Fritz has commended the successes of the 100 newly deployed Metro law enforcement officers in Bonteheuwel since July 2.
Fritz said since the additional deployment of 100 new law enforcement officers there have been 43 arrests made.
"There were 372 illegal substances confiscated and 7 firearms and ammunitions uncovered. What’s more, the additional deployments led to 43kg of stolen PRASA cables being found and confiscated,” Fritz said.
He said the community safety department will further be assisting the City in its crime-fighting initiatives by transferring R4.2 million towards School Resource Officers (SROs) and the creation of safe zones during this financial year.
"Amongst these safe zones is Bonteheuwel Secondary School. Additionally, R4.4 million will be transferred in the 2020/21 financial year and R4.6 million in 2021/22.”
“Initiatives such as these are essential in combatting crime and gangsterism and work alongside the joint-operations of the SANDF and SAPS. Only by working Better Together can we ensure the safety of the province,” Fritz said.
Mmusi Maimane said we cannot as a country continue to live in a world where gangs are attacking our communities and drugs are ravaging our young people. Picture: Sisonke Mlamla/Cape Argus
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