The Honourable Minister of Police, Minister Mthethwa;
The Deputy Minister of Police, Minister Sotyu;
The Secretary of Police, Jenni Irish-Qhobosheane;
The Chief Operations Officer of SAPS, Lt Gen Christine Mgwenya;
All Deputy National Commissioners, Divisional and Provincial Commissioners of the South African Police Service;
Senior Officers and colleagues;
All invited and distinguished guests;
A good morning to you all!
My team and I had a long and lively debate about the appropriateness of the language I have chosen to adopt for my address today. Their argument was that to base my address on the subject of football would be to trivialise the issue we are gathered to discuss here today.
I retorted by pointing out that the language of football is, by far, the most-spoken language among the majority of the people that this government seeks to communicate with on a daily basis. Then I invoked the spirit of Albert Camus, that noble son of Algeria who went on to rule the world of writing and thinking from the comfort of his ancestral home, France.
Among the many gems of wisdom that Camus gave the world is that, “all that I know most surely about morality and obligations, I owe to football.”
That clinched the argument in my favour.
One of the fondest memories I have of my late father is of him relaxing under his favourite tree on a lazy Saturday afternoon, listening to a radio commentary of a match involving his favourite football club, AmaZulu FC – uSuth’ Olumabhesh’ Ankone! Inyok’ Eluhlazana, Umabonwabulawe!
My father’s team is among the Premier Soccer League (PSL) clubs that played the most entertaining football and scored the most number of goals this past Premier Soccer League season. Surprisingly though, it is also one of the clubs that ended the year fighting relegation from the PSL.
Fans of football can give many different reasons for this apparent paradox - how a team that scored so many scintillating goals ended up being almost relegated.
My take on the issue is very simple. Although my father’s team is one of the teams that scored the most number of goals, it also happens to be counted among the teams that conceded the most number of goals.
Which means that for all the flair and excitement that the team’s coaching staff of Manqoba Mngqithi and Fani Madida brought into the team this past season, many of the the team’s extremely loyal fans still showed up at work on most Monday mornings in the foulest of moods.
If only Mngqithi and Madida had invested a bit more in the task of building a solid and uncompromising last line of defence.
Now, what has all of this got to do with the South African Police Service (SAPS)?
The dream that I shared with South Africa when I took over the reigns as national police commissioner on 1 August 2009 was to live long enough to see the day when your average young female South African will feel safe enough to walk home alone from a party or a nightclub at 4h00.
In the South Africa of my dreams, the role of the SAPS will be to prevent crime from taking place in the first place, and not to react to incidents of crime after they have occurred.
Members of the SAPS will not need to carry firearms as they patrol the streets of this beautiful country to make sure that not only are citizens and tourists safe, but that they, actually, do feel safe.
The SAPS of the future will be policing a society that would, over time, have come to fully embrace the human rights culture that forms the bedrock of the society we are trying to build in this country.
This is the same human rights culture that guides the men and women of the SAPS as they go about doing their daily duties as we speak today.
This future, ladies and gentlemen, is not only possible, it is firmly within our reach.
The only question we had to ask ourselves as we embarked upon our journey to turn the SAPS into a centre of excellence and an employer of first choice is, where do we begin in our quest to reconfigure and reposition this organisation for the future we all dream of.
Those who are familiar with the coaching philosophy of the current Real Madrid coach, Jose Mourihno, will have no difficulty understanding the approach we have chosen for the task at hand.
It is the same approach that was taken by, Carlos Alberto Parreira, the Brazilian coach who led us to the 2010 Fifa World Cup in our own backyard less than a year ago. Coincidentally, Lt General Pruis, who is now retired, used to tell me that this is also the same approach that was taken by the late Kitch Christie during the Springboks successful campaign to prevent the Webb Ellis trophy from leaving these shores back in 1995.
The first thing that Jose Mourihno does whenever he takes over a new club is to focus on building a solid and uncompromising last line of defence. This to ensure that his team does not leave itself vulnerable to counter-attacks whenever it forages forward in search of goals and victory.
Those who had the pleasure of watching Mourihno’s Chelsea side in its heyday will tell you all about the beauty of effective, efficient, consistent, drilled performance.
Words which we are confident will, in future, be used to describe the SAPS we are busy building with our every stride as members of the SAPS family.
Sadly for us, the SAPS of today has more in common with AmaZulu FC that consistently drives its fans to depths of despair every weekend.
Since the beginning of this year, hardly a weekend goes by without us in the SAPS family not having to mourn yet another breach of our weak defences.
Since the beginning of this year, hardly a weekend has gone by without us in the SAPS family having to get together to bury one or more causalities of this war that the criminal elements within this society we have sworn to protect are waging against us.
Despite this, the men and women of the SAPS continue to wake up every morning and tell themselves that, this afternoon, Mrs Mokoena will return home to her kids in one piece because no heartless thug will have put a bullet through her head during a brazen, daylight robbery at her shop.
Despite this, the men and women of the SAPS continue to wake up every afternoon and tell themselves that, tomorrow morning, Mr Smith will wake up to hold his usual pre-work meeting with his farm foreman because no hateful gang of thugs will have hacked him and his family to death as they slept in their farmhouse.
Ladies and gentlemen, the men and women of the SAPS do this every day even though they know too well that by choosing to be everyday heroes and heroines, they run the risk of having their names added to the long list of their colleagues who lose their lives in the line of duty on a daily basis.
They choose to do this even though they know that even If they survive a gruesome death on a given day, they may still pick up life-threatening injuries that will leave scars they will carry for the rest of their lives.
They choose to do this even though they know that even when they are ‘lucky’ enough to escape physical harm altogether, chances are their work will call on them to bear witness to horrors that will leave traumatised for the rest of their lives.
They are this society’s last line of defence.
The view of this management that I have the honour of leading is that the work of building the SAPS of the future begins with equipping these men and women to be the best they can be as well as mobilising the communities they serve to ensure that their operational environment is as safe as it can be.
That is the reason we are here today.
We are here to ask you to advise us on what we can do better to help the men and women of the SAPS become a solid and uncompromising last line of defence in the war against the criminals’ quest to take over the country’s beaches, city-centres and rural countryside.
In order to make it easy for you to help us, it is perhaps necessary that we first outline to you the interventions that we have already put in place in our search for a solution to the risks facing the men and women of the SAPS as they go about their work of protecting you.
In 2008, SAPS training programmes were reviewed and redesigned to ensure the operational readiness of members. The training programmes that were redesigned included: Basic Training; Street Survival; Firearm Competency and Firearm Principles and the application thereof.
Historically, the men and women of the SAPS had to undergo a twelve-month training in order to qualify as police officers. This training used to be split into two phases of six months each, a theoretical and a practical training. This was a once-off course that only new recruits had to undergo.
As you may well be aware, we have now increased the duration of our new recruit training programme to two years - split into twelve months of theoretical training and another twelve months of practical training.
The reason for this is that we believe that this longer period of training will result in better qualified and better prepared entry-level SAPS officers to serve you.
The second change we have made in our training programme is that we have now changed it into a life-long exercise rather than the once-off process it used to be. The motivation for this is so simple that you would be forgiven for asking the question, why did we take so long to do this?
The reality is that we have found that the preparedness of our officers to meet the physical challenges of the job, five or ten years after graduating from the training academies, is usually not much better than that of civilians. This is largely as a result of rustiness that comes with spending too much time fulfilling administrative roles within the SAPS.
What then happens is that you find an officer who may have spent the previous ten years pushing paper at a police station suddenly being called upon to engage an armed gang of robbers with the result that he or she comes off second-best, his dedication and motivation notwithstanding.
It is for this reason that we have decided to send all our officers to refresher- and advanced training course at regular intervals throughout the course of their service.
As we have previously stated, however, we are also encouraging our officers to strive to maintain the levels of physical fitness that they attain at training academies as a way of complementing the on-going training regime that we are laying out for them.
I must admit that I am happy with the enthusiasm with which our men and women have received our call in this regard. I can state this fact without any fear of contradiction, SAPS members are getting leaner and fitter.
Now, I just need to remind them that they need to make sure that they as they continue to get leaner, they become kinder, not meaner. After all, we are here to serve and nothing says that better than a reassuring smile.
At this juncture, ladies and gentlemen, I will ask you to please allow me to take this opportunity to explain the rationale behind the establishment of our specialised units that have come for so much criticism from some of you.
The truth of the matter is that no matter how well you train the general membership of the SAPS, it is simply not possible to do so in such a manner as that which would be required to ensure that they are able to go toe-to-toe with some of the criminal gangs that specialise in certain types of criminal activities in this country.
Surely, those who criticise us for establishing specialised units in the SAPS are not suggesting that we should strive to provide all our ordinary members with the levels of training and care that the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) provides to its special forces. This will simply not be practical.
For those who do not know, the guys who go out to execute cash-heists are not your run-of-the-mill thugs who simply wake up one day and decide they are going out on a score. What you are dealing with here are professional operatives who plan their operations with military precision and arm themselves with the most advanced weapons, including special armour-piercing ammunition.
And you tell me that I should send out my colleagues who are only trained to maintain the peace among ordinary civilians to be slaughtered by these para-militaries?
Sorry Boet, go ahead and call me all the names you want to call me. I will not do that. We do not recruit men and women to join the saps so they can be slaughtered.
Extra-special thugs deserve the attention of extra-special policemen and women. These extra-special thugs have earned our respect through years of shedding our blood like we are just another criminal gang battling it out for control of a particular street.
We are not a gang. We are a legitimately-constituted and mandated organ of state charged with the responsibility to ensure that there is peace, safety and security in this democratic republic. Members of the SAPS specialised units do not simply wake up and decide that they are leaving their bases and going into the streets of this country to instigate violence.
They only go out on a strictly ‘by-invitation-only’ basis.
The strange thing here is that our critics never bother to track down any of these para-militaries who terrorised our people for such a long time to elicit the same kind of feedback we get from ordinary citizens who socialise with them week-in, week-out all across the country.
If the anecdotes we hear from ordinary South Africans are anything to go by, these erstwhile merchants of death and mayhem in this beautiful country never stop to tell those they meet about the days they were unfortunate enough to come up against one of our specialised units.
In Zulu, kuthiwa “abawuvali umlomo!”
Which is not to say, as some of our traditional critics like to say, we are not mindful of the extra strain, mental and physical, that is placed on these units by their special mandate of shielding their colleagues and the public from the line of fire from these organised crime groups.
On the contrary, we are very mindful of this.
Hence the extra-levels of care we take to properly vet them at the time of their recruitment and to monitor them throughout their period of service and beyond to ensure that they do not suffer from any debilitating post-traumatic stress disorder.
Where there were teething problems, especially when it came to our commanders understanding of the protocols governing the deployment of these units, we are confident that we have managed to solve these.
In this regard, we would like to extend our sincere apologies to ordinary South Africans who ever had an occasion to ‘interact’ with these guys and ladies whilst they were out on a mission.
It simply should not have happened and should not happen in future.
Procedural directives
Now, coming back to the ordinary men and women of the SAPS who are the backbone of this organisation, there are certain things we would like to remind them of when it comes to the question of their safety.
There is a standing SAPS directive that makes the wearing of bulletproof vests compulsory for all policemen and women whilst they are on duty.
It has come to our attention that our members on the ground have developed a habit of putting their vests on for the mandatory parades that mark the official start of their shifts only to take these off immediately thereafter.
I would like to urge all provincial and station commissioners present here and those who were not able to attend to help me ensure that this practice is put to a stop, immediately. If there are questions about the bullet-proof vests on issue not being user-friendly, then members should take this up with management so that their concerns can be addressed.
Of course, I am very much alive to the inherent irony of me saying this in light of recent media reports linking me to a new ‘scandal’ of a letter that I supposedly wrote ordering the son-in-law of a late comrade and friend to supply the SAPS with bullet-proof vests.
Of course, there are several other guidelines that are issued from time to time to ensure the safety of the men and women of the SAPS.
SO (G) 28 guides the duties of the Station Commander and compels a station commander to ensure proper command and control of all members in his/her police station area.
SO (G) 255 guides the duties of a relief and specifically highlights the reporting and inspection of members and ensuring that members are sufficiently equipped and prepared for operational duties when they report on duty at parades.
SO (G) 361 provides clear rules on searching visitors to police cells and the visiting of police cells.
Special Force Order (G) 3A of 1987 specifically deals with the transporting of prisoners. National Instruction 4 of 2005 deals with searching a member when entering a prison.
Employee/family support
The SAPS recognises its responsibility in providing for the unfortunate death of a police officer and hence allocates a death grant in accordance with the Death Grant Policy of the SAPS. An officer, including a reservist, who dies on duty, receives the death grant.
The term “duty” is defined as any act by a member of the SAPS which is performed to prevent, combat and investigate crime, maintain public order, protect and secure the inhabitants of the republic and their property as well as uphold and enforce the law. This covers even those cases where a member who is off-duty places himself “on-duty” to respond to a crime that is being committed in their presence.
For the purpose of the death grant, the term “on duty” commences when the member departs from his or her residence or place where he or she stays while off duty, to perform his or her duties.
In the event of the death of a police officer, it is expected that specific guidelines be followed in terms of addressing bereavement, namely:
While the SAPS exercises a responsibility to assist the families of a member after his or her untimely death, the SAPS also grants monetary and non-monetary awards and medals to those members who have acted in such a manner which can be described as going beyond the call of duty.
Posthumous awards are also made under the same measure.
Here we are reminded of the sad occurrence of the deaths of seven of our elite police officers in their pursuit of armed robbers in extremely dangerous circumstances, who were all honoured posthumously with the Gold Cross for Bravery medal.
In the past year performances have been rewarded with nine Gold Cross for Bravery medals, two Silver Cross for Bravery medals, 152 Certificates of Commendation and three Certificates of Appreciation.
Many members who face the violent consequences of their duty to protect and serve all communities also survive attacks on them.
However, members are either left physically or mentally scarred. It is for this purpose that compensation management processes exist for injuries sustained on duty.
However, the scars that members carry are not always physical, more frequently, they are emotional and psychological. Members involved in violent incidents receive trauma-debriefing. Guidelines are also made available to SAPS members and managers that relate to dealing with: Stressful Events; Problem-Solving; Calming Techniques; Thinking Styles; Depression; Anger-management Strategies and Assertive Communication, to name but a few.
Ladies and gentlemen, as I indicated earlier, the purpose of my presentation was merely to give an indication of the strategies we have put in place to try and ensure that we build a solid foundation for our future to develop this organisation. Colleagues will provide details of additional measures we have put in place in this regard at commissions during the course of the day.
We trust that the picture I have painted has been helpful and will help you, help us build the solid and uncompromising last line of defence that will eneble to achieve our goal to turn the SAPS into the Chelsea we all knew at the height of Jose Mourihno’s reign at Stamford Bridge.
By the way, before anyone comes to the wrong conclusion about my loyalties where English football is concerned, let me just point out that I am an ever-grieving fan of the exciting Arsenal. And in that regard, I have a lot in common with the current generation of the AmaZulu supporters.
What is perhaps most important though is that, in Arsene Wenger, I still trust. And maybe AmaZulu supporters should similarly put their trust in Manqoba Mgqithi.
I thank you
Source: South African Police Service
Address by the National Commissioner of the South African Police Service (SAPS) General Bheki Cele at the Summit Against Police Killings
