24 April 2011
Release: immediate

Note to editors: This is a plan to resurrect the eThekwini Metro Police jointly presented by DA Mayoral Candidates for eThekwini and Cape Town, Ronnie Veeran and Patricia de Lille, drawing on the successes of the DA government in Cape Town.

The Durban Metro Police are tasked with enforcing our municipal bylaws supporting the SAPS with crime prevention. A good Metro Police force will supplement the work of the SAPS.

Durban Metro Police have currently 1056 vacant posts out of about 2200. Cape Town had a 25% vacancy rate when the DA took over, which they regarded as a crisis, yet with a 48% vacancy rate the Dubran Metro Police spokesperson says there are “more than enough” staff (Independent on Saturday, 23 April).

As a result of the shortage of staff in the Metro Police, communities are being affected:
· When the Umlazi Metro Police branch was recently established, the core members of the Chatsworth Anti-Drug Team were moved to Umlazi as a result of a shortage of officers, effectively disbanding the team.

· The community of K-section KwaMashu had to stage protests before council would take measures on the notorious Nkonjane Rd which has claimed the lives of schoolchildren as a result of speeding. Speeding must be controlled through effective enforcement by speed timing.

· On an evening in April only 1 Metro Police officer instead of 14 were on duty for the entire Pinetown and Queensburgh areas.

As a result of a properly implemented urban management strategy and a revitalised Cape Town Metro Police, crime in the Cape Town CBD was reduced by 90% within 2 years of the DA taking government. The same strategy is being rolled out across the Cape Town Metro with a view to reducing crime in the rest of the Metro.

When the DA took the City of Cape Town over from the ANC in 2006, the Metro Police was dysfunctional and had been crippled by cadre deployment. The number of officers had been reduced by 800 members. One out of every four posts in the metro police service in Cape Town was vacant and there were severe shortages of equipment and specialised skills. The Metro Police had a reputation for corruption, inefficiency and ill-discipline.

A DA government in eThekwini will immediately invest funds to attracting experienced officers to the Metro Police. We will ensure they are properly equipped and trained. We will establishe specialised units to combat crime, copper theft, drinking and driving and speeding.

In the DA’s first 100 days in office, emergency funds were utilised to fill critical posts in the metro police. Extra money was allocated for police equipment. In the DA’s first financial year, the Metro Police received a bigger capital budget than it had had for the entire five years before that.

Cape Town now has a Metro Police engaged in more real police work than any other Metro Police in the country. They don’t just enforce by-laws. They go after the criminals who terrorise our communities. And they catch them.

Breaking the Chain: The DA’s Plan to Fight Drugs in eThekwini

Drugs and drug addiction are having a devastating effect on the eThekwini community. Residents of Chatsworth, Phoenix and other suburbs such as Claremont, Umlazi and KwaMashu have been caught in the stranglehold of notorious drugs such as sugars and whoonga.

Widespread addiction to these drugs has contributed to the tearing of our social fabric, broken families and a high incidence of crime and criminality. The local community bears the burden as dealers battle for turf and addicts look for every opportunity to fund their habits. In some suburbs of the city addicts have even resorted to preying on HIV patients to steal their ARV’s for the production of whoonga.

In Chatsworth the Metro Police were making exceptional breakthroughs in the fight against drugs and drug dealers and yet the unit’s special drug team was effectively disbanded when its 5 members were moved to the new Umlazi station, leaving the drug lords to operate with impunity. This is yet another indictment of how the effectiveness of our Metro Police is compromised by the poor management which has left the force with a 48% vacancy rate and thus only half the personnel it needs.

The DA-led city of Cape Town has demonstrated that the Metro Police, which are funded by the ratepayers of the metro, can be an enormously effective force in combating the sale and distribution of drugs. Since taking power in the city the DA created a specialized Metro Police unit to tackle the drugs scourge.

As a result, arrests for drug-related crimes soared from 180 in the 2005/6 financial year to a massive 955 in 2009/10 financial year. This has also contributed to the reduction of the overall crime statistics as drug-related offences are often linked to more serious offences such as murder, assault, theft and armed robbery.

A DA government in eThekwini would immediately set about creating a specialized Metro Police unit to tackle this problem head-on. This unit will consist of highly trained and equipped officers and an efficient intelligence gathering arm.

This unit would partner with the SAPS, private security companies and community policing fora to identify where drugs are being sold, how they are entering the city and the drug lords responsible for selling them. Partnerships will also be sought with the prosecuting authority to ensure that arrests, evidence gathering and subsequent prosecutions result in watertight convictions.

Keeping the lights on: the DA’s plan to stem cable theft

The theft of electricity cables within the eThekwini municipal area has reached dramatic proportions, severely hampering the operation of electricity infrastructure in the city. Officials in the eThekwini Electricity Department have revealed to the DA that there are an average of 15 incidents of cable theft per day, resulting in 300 – 400 light poles being blacked out and plunging key areas into darkness.

The theft of copper cables in Cape Town was a major problem. The Democratic Alliance city administration took decisive action and established the “Copperheads” unit within the Metro Police. This specialised unit was tasked with combating cable theft as well as seeking out scrap dealers and individuals who were buying stolen cables. The unit has been extremely successful in prosecuting those who commit crimes of sabotage against the City of Cape Town. Such is the success of the unit, that the cost to the city to replace copper cabling has dropped from R20-million pa to just R500 000 pa.

We would take the following action steps within three months of taking office:

· establish a “Copperheads” unit within the Metro Police. This unit will be staffed and equipped to fight those criminals who target municipal infrastructure and bring them to justice.

· motivate for the re-classification of the theft of electricity cables as sabotage to municipal infrastructure. This classification of sabotage carries a far heavier sentence in the courts.

· table a bylaw amendment to regulate and scrutinise scrap dealers who are buying stolen municipal infrastructure. Should scrap dealers be found to be in possession of stolen municipal infrastructure their business licence will be revoked.

Clamping Down: road safety begins and ends with enforcement

One of the Metro Police’s core responsibilities is to enforce the laws on our roads and keep a lid on drinking and driving. Speeding and drunk driving account for the majority of road fatalities in South Africa. According to the Road Traffic Management Corporation 45% of weekend fatalities are directly a result of drunk driving.

The key to changing driver behaviour is ensuring regular and strict enforcement of the law. Drivers must always be wary that they could get caught if they speed, drive under the influence of alcohol or drugs or break traffic laws.

We will ensure that:

· the culture of minor traffic offences and reckless driving is eradicated through strict enforcement of traffic laws and by-laws;

· an annual community survey is conducted to find the roads must in need of speed enforcement and the necessary applications are made to the Director of Public Prosecutions to enforce the speed limit on these roads;

· an annual community survey is conducted to establish major sources of drunk driving such as taverns, night clubs, sporting events and beach front venues and regular road blocks are set up as a deterrent.

Community Participation: collaborating with SAPS and the community

The primary role of crime prevention and investigating crimes falls with the SAPS who are a Provincial and National run competency. Our Metro Police service do play a role in crime fighting, and must play a greater role going forward. Some communities run neighbourhood watches and vibrant Community Policing forums but many others do not.

In order to enhance collaboration:
- in partnership with SAPS, functioning Community Policing Fora will be established in every policing area in the Metro and will engage in real crime prevention activities;
- Metro Police specialised units will be re-established and revitalised to combat specific crime types and Metro Police will be required to participate in all CPF activities in their area;
- we will increase communication and collaboration between CPF leadership, SAPS station commanders and Metro Police commanders;

Any criminal who enters a neighbourhood with an intention to commit a crime is unable to do so without being seen by a member of the community. Improved communication between community members, the SAPS, private security and Metro Police can be the difference between a crime being committed or prevented.

Summary

Durban Metro Police are grossly understaffed and lacking specialised units. We would urgently address the staffing, equipment and training shortages and establish specialised units to tackle specific crimes. We will emphasise the enforcement of bylaws by the Metro Police in order to combat the present culture of petty criminality.

We want the Durban Metro Police to be regarded as the Guardians of our Metro. Only through effective law enforcement can we build an efficient municipality which delivers for all.

Because the DA delivers for all!

Sithuthukisa wonke umuntu!

Ons lewer dienste aan almal!

Media Enquiries:

Cllr Ronnie Veeran
DA eThekwini Mayoral Candidate
082 371 7698

Mbali Ntuli
Mayoral Spokesperson
072 118 8556

Statement by
Cllr Ronnie Veeran
DA eThekwini Mayoral Candidate

08 April 2011
Release: immediate

It has been revealed that only one female officer, who is not a driver, was available to cover the merged Pinetown and Queenburgh policing areas on the night of 5 April 2011. Obviously no police station can operate under these conditions. Today the DA has learnt that of the 2200 posts in the Metro Police, 1144 are currently vacant (48%). If any sector of the public service is not properly staffed, it cannot deliver the service expected of it.

The DA believes that part of the problem is born of the consolidation of the Pinetown Metropolitan Police station with that of Queensburgh which, despite claims to the contrary, has had the effect of reducing the resources available to the police, rather than increasing then.

The question now is what must happen if the situation is to be turned around and the various offices be capacitated to deliver? The DA believes it has the solution based on best practice in Cape Town, where the DA-led administration has turned the Cape Town Metro police into a model of excellence.

When the DA took the City of Cape Town over from the ANC in 2006, there was already a metro police service. It was dysfunctional and had been crippled by cadre deployment. The number of officers had been reduced by 800 members. One out of every four posts in the metro police service in Cape Town was vacant. There were severe shortages of equipment and specialised skills. The metro police had a reputation for corruption, inefficiency and ill-discipline.

In the DA’s first 100 days in office, emergency funds were utilised to fill critical posts in the metro police. Extra money was allocated for police equipment. In the DA’s first financial year, the Metro Police received a bigger capital budget than it had had for the entire five years before that.

Cape Town now has a metro police engaged in more real police work than any other metro police in the country. They don’t just enforce by-laws. They go after the criminals who terrorise our communities. And they catch them.

Since the DA took over Cape Town, crime in the city centre has been cut by 90%. Cape Town is the safest city in the country. Last year, there were 955 arrests for drug-related crime, compared to just 180 arrests five years previously. The expansion of the metro police, coupled with a massive investment in social infrastructure like parks, libraries and youth centres, has cut down the murder rate in Khayelitsha by 33%.

Given the chance, the DA can bring this delivery record to eThekwini. It is quite clear from the situation in Pinetown and Queensburgh that this kind of attention to detail and turn-around strategy is needed if the crime rate is to be reduced and the police fully capacitated. The DA has the solution, it is based on its delivery record and, if given the chance in eThekwini, it is a service we can deliver to all of the residents.

Media Enquiries:

Cllr Ronnie Veeran
DA eThekwini Mayoral Candidate
082 371 7698

Michael Beaumont
Provincial Director
083 776 2760

My parents are Ex-Zimbabwean and came to SA in 1980. Family all live up in Ballito. I’m in Pinetown in order to best do my job as Ward 18 councillor.

2. How did you get involved in local politics, and what motivated and inspired you to do so.

I used to be a supporter of the ANC. During the 2000′s that waned to the extent that I joined the DA in 2007 out of the blue. Fortunately I made it onto their excellent Young Leaders programme for 2008 and that set the tone for the years to come. In 2009 after the General Election, I took an opportunity to stand in a ward where the councillor had moved to Province and was elected in June 2009.

3. Who are your role-models.

My parents are examples of the sort of people that make the world a better place. Mandela would never have been able achieve what he did if there wasn’t a significant number of reasonable people out there willing to choose the middle road. So on the one hand, my parents inspire me to be good, wholesome and to cherish family. And leaders like Madiba inspire me to have conviction, believe in the prosperous South Africa we want become, and fight for the balance our democracy requires before we will see that.

4. What did you do before you became a councillor.

I ran at IT business for 10 years. I am a bona fide geek turned politician.

5. Tell us a bit about your family.

My brothers are both younger than me, though there’s only 3.5 years between Barry, the youngest, and myself. My parents were both deeply affected by the Rohdesian Civil War, my mother losing her legs as a teenager from a landmine blast and my father being the victim of a few blasts while on service. Much of my motivation comes from not wanting to see that sort of violence happening in South Africa as it has over most of post-Independence Africa. We can and must be different.

6. Do you enjoy your job.

I find my job both infuriatingly frustrating and very rewarding. I am frustrated at the crippled state of our local government, the low quality of services which result and the wastage of money which occurs through poor management and corruption. I am infuriated regularly by the cheap politics employed in the face of severe poverty and suffering, and I am regularly incensed by the liberal use of the race-card. However, there are so many people out there both in need of help and willing to help. Many city officials do everything they can to do the best job they can, and many people can be helped by me directly. The knowledge that I can directly make a difference for people who really need it as well as the desire to see the gradual improvement in the quality of our City government provide me with all the motivation I need to counter the negatives.

7. Have there been moments in your career when you thought you were going to fail at what you were doing.

I have failed. I failed to ensure that Pinetown SAPS was provided with the sort of quality senior leadership it needs to fight the significant crime wave in the area. The tradeoff was that several significant operational improvements have taken place as a result of the pressure and focus. I still maintain that Pinetown SAPS needs a station commander who is passionate about the morale and performance of his/her officers in the significant fight against crime in the area.

That is my biggest failure so far. I am certain I will fail again. Will I fail in my bigger mission to help make South Africa the prosperous Rainbow Nation which Madiba helped us dream about? Perhaps, but I sincerely doubt that. Our democracy will see the balance it so desperately needs in the coming decade and through that will come the good governance required to service the needs of the people and create the opportunities people need to make their lives better.

8. What was the proudest moment in your career.

I couldn’t say really. I’ll be proud when I know the future of our country is secure.

9. What was the most embarrassing moment in your career.

I really messed my first interview as a potential council candidate. As my MP says, I really screwed it up. Thank goodness they chose to give me a bash anyway.

10. Tell us something about you the public doesn’t know.

I attend the KZN Philharmonic at the City Hall as often as my calendar permits. I find the performances liberating in the same way that doing a hard workout in gym is – you need to sit still, be quiet, listen and take it in until its finished.

11. What are your goals, ambitions, and future plans.

Have a family. Inspire people to live a life of peace and love (Yes, I am an Amakhosi fan). Be a major contributor to securing our democracy and ensuring our government is the first truly good government South Africa has ever known.

12. What are your likes, interests and hobbies.

I rowed a lot at university and after. I enjoy overlanding (4×4) especially north of South Africa. I have a 1990 Land Cruiser and am about to buy a 1980 Mercedes, so I guess I have a thing for old cars. I am a genuine geek, and administer several Linux servers and applications for projects within the party.

13. What message would you like to give to the people in your Ward for the upcoming election.

If you are not yet registered to vote or if you have moved since the last election, please register 5/6 March. Then on election day, please vote on who you think will govern eThekwini best. Leave the rest of the issues for dinner-table debates. We need good governance – vote for the party you believe has a proven track record in delivery.

Cllr Chapman said the plans had been confirmed this morning, “The West Regional Commander, Dir. Kay Naidoo, confirmed on the phone to me this morning that the instruction had come from head of Metro Police, Eugene Nzama. The City Manager, Dr Sutcliffe, said he did not know of the plans but would bring them up at his City Manager’s meeting this afternoon and revert. Anonymous reports from officers suggest that SAB and a Dir. Chin from Durban will be setting up an alcohol and drug testing facility in Pinetown using the premises of the Pinetown Metro Police.”

An officer who wished to remain anonymous asked expressed concern for the delivery of services in the area and the lack of consultation, “It is official, we are all to report to Queensburgh. There are so few members left at Pinetown already that are operationally we struggle. Who is going to help the community now in the area? There was no report to or discussion with anybody in the community.”

Councillor Chapman believes that the complexity of the Pinetown area requires a Metro Police station in the middle of Pinetown to ensure a quick response to emergency situations or law enforcement. For the past year Chapman has been petitioning Metro Police management to deal with the shortage of Captains and improve the productivity of the Pinetown Metro Police station. “What we need is more quality officers, better leadership and more discipline! Pinetown is the covergence point of 7 provincial roads, has a massive concentration of taxis and pedestrians fighting for space with heavy trucks and delivery vehicles constantly flowing through the area’s industrial, commercial and residential zones.”

Instead of moving the Pinetown Police Station further away from where it is most needed, what Pinetown actually needs according to Cllr Chapman is more effect law enforcement. “If you consider the mix of different property zonings in the area, the very large parks such as Crompton and Lahee Parks, the sheer number of illegal businesses, the complex traffic and pedestrian environment and the general problem in the area of crime, what Pinetown actually needs is more Captains and more focus on bylaw and traffic enforcement, and definitely not for the station to be shut down.”

Response times, crucial to traffic management and bylaws enforcements are going to be severly affected if Metro Police officers serving the Pinetown are going to be based from the Queensburgh Metro office. “There is not reasonable justificant for why the station should be closed. Instead of being able to be on the scene within a few minutes, Metro Police are now going to travel for 15 to 20 minutes or more depending on traffic to get to the centre of Pinetown from Queensburgh. The consequences of this drastically increased response time will inevitably be poorer law enforcement and more traffic problems.”

– Warwick Chapman (Cllr Ward 18) | 083 7797 094 | ward18@ethekwini.org | http://warwickchapman.com

Yesterday another 8 people were massacred in the greater Pinetown area. This brings to 18 the number of people murdered in mass murders in the last 6 weeks. There is something fundamentally wrong with the structure of our communities in this area. Whether it is political, drug or crime related, our Police Service must figure out what is going on so community leaders can get to work trying to address the social causes of these tragedies.

– Cllr Warwick Bruce Chapman, Pinetown

I would like to quote Major-General Jula, our Deputy Provincial Commissioner of Police who said the following in this hall on Sunday:
“We invite the community to join us in the fight against crime by demonstrating a sense / culture of territoriality over their neighbourhoods and playing a role as whistle blowers and our eyes and ears.”

We must take ownership of our neigbourhoods. We must no longer accept what has become a culture of violent crime. We must ensure that known criminals no longer feel comfortable in our homes. We must blow the whistle on criminals and errant Police officers.

All members of SAPS have sworn to fulfill their obligations as laid out in the constitution and I remind you of them:
- to prevent, combat and investigate crime
- to maintain public order
- to protect and secure the inhabitants of the Republic and their property
- and to uphold and enforce the law

In the course of this partnership it must be remembered that for a partnership to work, both parties must commit themselves. If one of the community or the Police do not play ball, this partnership will fail and crime will be the winner.

We will continue to support the growth and business of Community Police Forums and the formation of neighbourhood watches and street committees affiliated to the CPF. We recognise the role we have to play here and we embrace the opportunity and the responsibility before us.

I will echo something said by Brig. Zama at a CPF meeting earlier this year: “There is only 1 CPF in Pinetown”. He is right, we have one CPF comprising 5 sub-fora. The sub-fora cover roughly, Wyebank, New Germany, Kloof, Pinetown Central and Pinetown South and are named accordingly. Brig. Zama’s contention that there are 2 CPF’s lies in his unhappiness with the high level of activity in the Pinetown Central Sub-forum, composed of mostly white residents of the mostly white central Pinetown area (Manors, Cowie’s Hill, CBD and Industrial).

As a ward councillor it is my responsibility to support the CPF in my ward. When I became a councillor in 2009, the Pinetown Central Sub-forum, which had been filled with people selected by Brig. Zama after the takeover by him of the whole CPF, was defunct, and I managed to get one or two meetings off the ground before the chairperson was kicked out of the CPF on a criminal charge. I invited a retired policeman living in Pinetown, Mr Ken Goldstone, to stand for chair during the AGM which was called to elected a new committee. The AGM was advertised, organised and chaired by the SAPS and only 1 person of colour attended the meeting, Mr Aubrey Ngubane, who I had invited. Mr Ngubane declined nomination to the Chair due to his work commitments but accepted nomination to and was elected as Deputy Chair.

Mr Ngubane has since been seconded to revive the dormant Pinetown South (Ward 16) Sub-forum and I have attended those meetings in place of their own absent ward councillor, Mr Stanley Buthelezi. Fortunately, as a result of the recent focus on crime, Mr Buthelezi attended his own CPF meeting last month and I am hopeful of his continued involvement. I attended the last AGM of the the New Germany (Ward 21) Sub-forum, which, lacking the ongoing support of their Ward 21 Councillor Ms Nelly Nyanisa, has not been active between AGMs. The Kloof (Ward 10) Sub-forum, with the full support of Cllr Gill Noyce is active and meets regularly. The Wyebank Sub-forum appears to be dormant according to report backs at our monthly CPF meeting at Pinetown SAPS where all the sub-fora are supposed to be represented.

I have no doubt that most if not all the names of absent councillors mentioned above will be in full attendance at this Saturday’s meeting of the CPF. That will be the first time this year that other ward councillors attend as is required of them as ex-officio members. I have personally called and timeously invited the other ward councillors in the Pinetown Policing Area at the request of the Pinetown Cluster CPF chair, Mr Sibaca but they did not attend the meeting. Cllr Diana Hoorzuk stated on Sunday that she and her colleagues have not participated in the CPF meetings for two years because they have not received invitations. Protesting that the notices are in the papers, that the meetings are on a fixed schedule, that I had tried to invite the other ward councillors previously, and that perhaps it is also incumbent upon them to find out for themselves, I was advised that unless personally invited for each meeting they could not attend.

Today, coincidentally, for the first time ever, I received a written invitation addressed “Dear Honourable Councillor” to attend Saturday’s CPF meeting. Hopefully, as suggested above, this bodes well for the full participation, as is required of them, by the other 4 ward councillors in the Pinetown policing area.

Brig. Zama chose not to attend either of the two public meetings of which he was well aware. The meetings were advertised in the newspapers and via email to members of the community, which at very least, his crime intelligence team should have got wind of (as I was advised they had). The CPF memorandum was drafted at his behest and he had visibility of it before it was sent to the Provincial Commissioner the first time. The second memorandum was drafted at a later stage, by myself, for the attention of the Provincial Commissioner. Since it was addressed to the PC, it is up to Gen. Ngobeni whether the Brig. was advised of the contents thereof. However, since it is a public document and has been made available since 24 October on my blog at warwickchapman.com, the Brig. can easily source the document should he wish.

I was, however, at both meetings, as were members of the press, and at no stage did anyone say or intimate that we want a white station commander. We want a commander who cares for his members and develops them to their full potential in the very tough fight against crime in Pinetown. We want a commander to bring the rate of crime down to match the trend of the rest of the country instead of up, against the trend. So, in short, Brig. Zama’s quotes contention that “They are saying they want a white commander” is hogwash. Brig. Zama is a race obsessed, manipulative, power-mad dictator. Just ask those who have to work for him… that is if you can find someone not too terrified to speak.

In the end, he is still the Station Commander and I am still the Ward Councillor. We may not like one another, but we have a responsibility to the people living in the Pinetown Policing Area to work together. That is, indeed, what I committed myself to at Sunday’s meeting infront of members of the public from my ward and from a few other wards who attended. That is why, on Monday morning, I was sitting infront of the Brig. at the 09h00 GOCOC meeting talking about the improvement in vehicles, the realigned sectors and the crime statistics for the past weekend. We do have work to do, and that is what we will do, with Brig. Zama while we must, but ideally with a more caring and committed officer at the helm.

All was set for a march today but I called off the march on Tuesday and called this meeting instead. I did this because marching today would have meant ignoring the seriousness with which the Provincial Commissioner’s office has taken our cry for help and the immediate steps taken to shore up the fight against crime in this area. We’ve all seen the extra vehicles and manpower, and we’ve all seen the choppers. We know they won’t be here for ever, but I for one sincerely appreciate the both the speed and scale of the response from the Commissioner to our pleas.

When I addressed you two weeks ago, the focus was on the efficiency and quality of the service provided by Pinetown SAPS. Since then, I have received information from anonymous members of Pinetown Police and from members of the public along two broad themes.

Firstly, Pinetown SAPS members have reinforced the assertion I made two weeks ago that morale is at rock bottom. Concerningly it has even been suggested that the proper training, development and support required to allow members to develop to their full potential has been stunted by what one Police member referred to as the Zama-PF dictatorship inside Pinetown SAPS. This is, of course, the man who is said to be the only station commander in the Province who refused to swear an oath that he commit himself to reduce crime in his Policing area.

Secondly, members of the public and anonymous SAPS members have provided me sufficient information to suggest that there are some serious irregularities, both procedural and financial which need to be stamped out. Wasted expenditure, wrongful arrests in order to intimidate business owners, refusing to create cases are but the tip of the iceberg I’m told.

National Commissioner Cele and Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa have said some rather unambiguous things about corruption over the past months. Just yesterday Minister Mthethwa said his department is looking at having a corrupt-free police force by this time next year. He said that part of the plan to have a disciplined force with good standing in the community will include extending the period of training from six months to one year, starting with the next intake.

I would like to emphasise part of what the Minister said, “a disciplined force with good standing in the community”. We humbly request nothing less for Pinetown – a disciplined force with good standing in our community.

The minister says the next intake will be free from what he dubs as “cop tsotsi”, saying they want to ensure that the country has the type of police force with men and women who are upright and those who are going to protect the weak in communities.

We don’t want cop tsosti’s in Pinetown. We want dedicated, public servants who we can respect for the crucial role they play in our community. We want our station commander to have such good standing in our community that he is invited to school prizegiving dinners and special events as the honoured guest. We want our Policemen and women to serve as role models to the children they serve to protect.

Mr Deputy Commissioner, our Police Minister and the National Commissioner said also that “corrupt policemen need to be kicked out of the force” and that 54 police officers were arrested last month. If there are corrupt cops at Pinetown SAPS, please help this community and do the Minister’s willing and kick them out of the force!

After the string of horrific murders in the area over the past weeks, some community members started a group on Facebook called “Make CRIMETOWN, PINETOWN again!”. As per usual, I caught some flack from my political opponents who immediately chose their dog-eared race card and suggested that I was trying to get back the Pinetown of the bad old days.

Fortunately, the Minister of Police and the people of Pinetown seem to share the same sentiment. This week at the launch of the festive season anti-crime campaign in Gauteng, the Minister said: “We need Hillbrow and Berea to go back to the beautiful places where we used to live.”

This crusade by the people of Pinetown is not about the Pinetown of the bad old days; it is about making Pinetown in the new South Africa safe and pleasant to live in. It’s about making Pinetown safe and pleasant to live in for all South Africans who may choose to do so.

At the meeting two weeks ago in this hall on 24 October, Ken Goldstone, Deputy-Chair of the Pinetown CPF, and I each handed a memorandum to Brig. Sayer, the Pinetown Cluster Commander, for the attention of the Provincial Commissioner.

For the benefit of those who were not at the previous meeting, in brief, the memoranda requested the following:

The CPF memorandum which was compiled at the request of the Station Commander for the attention of provincial leadership of SAPS:
1. Shortage of trained and experienced detectives
2. Shortage of operational vehicles
3. Shortage of operational computers
4. The moratorium on the recruitment of reservists
5. The maintenance and cleanliness of the building

The memorandum I submitted on behalf of all those who were at the meeting on 24 October:
1. A replacement station commander who is empowered to sort Pinetown SAPS out
2. A renewed commitment from Pinetown SAPS to community policing
3. That the confusing delimitation of the CPF subfora in Pinetown be simplified
4. Lastly, in full “That Pinetown SAPS publicly commits itself to ensuring that every available Policeman and women will be committed to effectively discharging the responsibilities of the Police Service as laid out in the Constitution and the (Police) Act.

I thus ask you to welcome the (Deputy) Provincial Commissioner of Police to address us today in response to the issues laid out in the memoranda.

NOTE: Major-General Jula then handed over a written copy of the response which he went through for the benefit of those present at the meeting.

Our constitution requires that the Police Service must “discharge its responsibilities effectively” and states the object of the Police Service as to “prevent, combat and investigate crime”. It is no secret that too many of our Police are obsessed with power and money and not in the least interested in ensuring the effective discharging of their responsibilities.

The Pinetown community knows that its station is without doubt not effectively discharging its responsibilities, and we’re taking a stand. We expect every available man and vehicle on patrol, every incident of bribery or corruption to result in a dismissal and every instance of dereliction of duty to result in a suspension and disciplinary hearing. The time has come to restore discipline, integrity and a culture of service into our Police Service. Take a stand and assure your rights as afforded to you under our constitution.

24 October, 2010
Memorandum: Pinetown SAPS

As the elected public representative for most of the Pinetown area, and one of the only 3 councillors in the Pinetown policing area who actively participate in community policing structures, I hereby submit the following memorandum.

The partnership between the Pinetown SAPS, notably the station commander, and the CPF and community as a whole may exist, but it exists only to the extent required to fulfil the legal mandate. In practice, there is no collaborative effort between Pinetown SAPS and the community it serves to fight crime.

As a community we are committed to the concepts of sector and community policing as laid out in law and SAPS policy. We are convinced that it is only through a vibrant partnership with the community that SAPS can fulfil its constitutional mandate to prevent, combat and investigate crime, to maintain public order and to protect and secure the inhabitants of the Republic.

We are no longer willing to top the charts year after year for crimes like housebreaking and hijackings. We believe the rate of crime in this area is so high principally for two reasons:
1. The partnership with the community as envisaged in SAPS sector and community policing policy does not exist and thus SAPS are doing their work without the vital assistance of the community.
2. The leadership of SAPS in Pinetown has failed to ensure basic operational necessities such as staff and vehicles have been taken care of. Morale and discipline appear to be at an all time low as a result.

Thus, in addition to the specific issues laid out in the memorandum submitted by the Pinetown Community Police Forum, in my capacity as ward councillor for Pinetown central, I request the following:
1. That a suitably experienced, qualified and motivated Policeman be found to replace the station commander at Pinetown SAPS.
2. That this person be given all the administrative and logistical support he/she requires to sort out the staff, vehicle, training, morale and discipline problems at Pinetown SAPS.
3. That, in accordance with the law and SAPS policy, the concept of Community Policing be embraced by the new station commander and sector commanders be tasked with ensuring a close working relationship with community living in their sectors.
4. That the confusing situation of sub-fora demarcation being different to sector demarcation be regularised so that Sector and Community policing in Pinetown can be harmonised.
5. That SAPS Pinetown publicly commits itself to ensuring that every available Policeman and women will be committed to effectively discharging the responsibilities of the Police Service as laid out in the Constitution and the Act.

I believe these issues are serious enough that the response to this and the CPF memorandum be delivered in person. I thus, request that the above the responded to in the form of an address at a Public Meeting at a venue to be announced on Sunday 7 November, 2010.

Yours faithfully

Councillor WB Chapman
Ward 18
eThekwini Municipality