NCOP steps in as KZN police battle staff shortages and poor infrastructure amid rising crime levels

News24

5 hours ago

SAPS
NCOP delegation meets with KwaZulu-Natal police amid allegations of infiltration by criminal syndicates.
Only 23 000 officers serve a population of 12 million, raising alarm over SA Police Service capacity to fight crime.
Umlazi Police Station still crippled after 2021 unrest, while rural communities remain underserved.
KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi held a closed-door meeting this week with a delegation from the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) as Parliament intensifies efforts to strengthen its relationship with the SA Police Service (SAPS) across the country.
The engagement, which formed part of NCOP's constituency work in the province, focused on the challenges facing law enforcement, including chronic under-resourcing, infrastructure shortages and rising crime levels.
This comes after Mkhwanazi's explosive allegations last month. He claimed that criminal syndicates had infiltrated the highest levels of government and accused Police Minister Senzo Mchunu of interfering with police investigations.
Mchunu has since been placed on special leave by President Cyril Ramaphosa, with Firoz Cachalia stepping in as interim minister. However, the NCOP delegation emphasised that these allegations were not on the agenda during their meeting with Mkhwanazi.
DA provincial whip Mzamo Billy, who led the delegation, said that the oversight visit was part of their broader mandate to understand and address the challenges faced by the SAPS in the province.
The engagement was purely about crime in the province and the operational challenges the SAPS is facing. We aim to help raise these issues in the national Parliament.
Mzamo Billy
According to Billy, during the meeting, the provincial police leadership painted a bleak picture of the reality on the ground.
With a population of about 12 million, only 23 000 police officers service KwaZulu-Natal, a ratio that Billy described as 'shocking' and inadequate to meet the demands of communities.
'This tells you we are unable to deal with crime the way that we should or respond in time,' he added.
Infrastructure concerns were also raised. The current SAPS provincial headquarters has been in rented premises for years and lacks basic amenities such as parking.
Police here don't even have a proper headquarters. That's unacceptable.
Mzamo Billy
One of the pressing concerns was the state of the police stations, particularly those affected during the July 2021 unrest.
The Umlazi Police Station, which was looted during the violence, is still not fully operational. Firearms were allegedly stolen and were now allegedly being used in crimes in the area.
Billy said the oversight visit revealed deeper systemic issues, including an insufficient number of police stations, especially in the rural and poor communities.
People in some areas still have to travel long distances to get to a police station. There are also mobile police stations in some areas that don't operate 24 hours, which is a serious concern for communities.
Mzamo Billy
Staff shortages also dominated the challenges. There are numerous vacancies within the SAPS, including in Crime Intelligence units, which further hamper the province's ability to effectively tackle crime.
'Even with committed officers, the police are severely under-capacitated,' Billy stressed.
As part of the oversight week, the NCOP delegation was scheduled to meet with Premier Thami Ntuli and members of the provincial cabinet. These meetings are aimed at escalating the issues identified during engagements with the SAPS and exploring ways to address them through legislation or collaboration with other government departments.
Billy said the delegation had agreed with the provincial police management to isolate specific challenges that require intervention at different levels, including those needing a legislative approach and others requiring engagement with departments such as public works.
'The matter of the police buildings, for example, falls under the public works department. It's our job to help facilitate that process so our officers can work in a safe and proper environment,' he said.
He added that the MPs across the country should be doing similar oversight visits during the constituency weeks.
'It's what they get paid to do,' he said.