More still needs to be done to improve crime stats - Police Committee
The Portfolio Committee on Police says it is still concerned about the increase in some of the crime categories contained in the 2014/15 financial year crime statistics report which was released in Parliament today.
While the Committee appreciated the plans South African Police Service (SAPS) has towards reducing stubborn crimes, such as murder and contact crimes, it maintained that SAPS management ought to put in place short-to-medium term plans to immediately thwart these crimes. These plans, according to Committee Chairperson, Mr Francois Beukman, would yield nothing without the involvement of the community and civil society.
A number of plans, such as the plan to establish a task team to address concerns emanating from the Farlam Commission, which are a microcosm of crime situation in the country, have been tabled before the Committee. The Committee wants the implementation of these plans to be expedited.
The Committee was also concerned about the noticeable trends in gang violence, in particular in schools and wants SAPS to work together with communities and youth formations in containing these acts before they spiral out of control.
The reduction of crimes such as those against women and children was welcomed by the Committee as a move towards ensuring that the vulnerable groups of our society are protected.
On the matter of ensuring reliable statistical information, the Committee welcomed the innovation by the SAPS to partner with Statistics South Africa (Stats SA), saying it hopes this will go a long way in ensuring that the country is provided with a true reflection of the crime situation so that the crime fighting strategies are not misinformed.
The Committee also called on SAPS to ensure harsher consequences in order to dissuade police officers from participating in criminal activities. Having 686 police officers being arrested for their involvement in respective crimes, according to Mr Beukman, is unacceptable and should be discouraged.
The Committee said it was also concerned about the high levels of gun violence, saying there was a need to ensure that all resources are utilised to bring this down.
“Violence in our society is too high and the respect for rule of law should be cultivated at all levels of the society, because the 190 000 police officers cannot solely reduce the violence in our country. They need all sectors of the society to do their part in fighting the scourge of crime,” said Mr Beukman.
For media enquiries or interviews with the Chairperson of the Portfolio Commitee on Police, Mr Francois Beukman, please contact:
Temba Gubula
Tel: 021 403 8307
Cell: 078 735 8809
E-mail: tgubula@parliament.gov.za
