Programme Director
The Honourable Executive Mayor of Bojanala Platinum District Municipality,
Councillor Louis Diremelo
The Honourable Executive Mayor of Rustenburg Local Municipality, Councillor Mpho Khunou
Batlotlegi Magosi a rona a a tlotlegang
Honourable Executive Mayors, Mayors, MMCs for Public Safety, Councillors
Acting Provincial Commissioner for the South African Police Service (SAPS), Major General Naidoo
Acting Head of Department from the Public Safety Branch of the Department, Mr Bailey Mahlakoleng
Members of the Provincial Community Policing Board led by the Chairperson Mr Leonard Brown
Members of the North West Business Against Crime led by Chairperson, Ms Susan Seabi
Executive and Senior Managers from across all spheres of government
SAPS Provincial Management, Cluster and Station Commanders
Representatives of the business sector, agriculture unions in the province
Non-governmental organisations (NGOs), sector departments, faith-based organisations
Executives and members of clustercommunity policing boards, community policing forums
Members of the media
Ladies and gentlemen
I guess it is undisputable that the majority of people in our towns, villages and across all sectors of our communities hate crime with the same passion expressed by an anonymous poet who wrote the poemI hate crime which reads:
“I HATED IT; like a dog wandering on the street detests to be lambasted,
I hated it; like thunder clouds in sky which simply refrain to rain,
I hated it; like the seasonal stream of water which protests vehemently against drying,
I hated it; like a sacrosanct priest in the church who intractably rejects worldly pleasures,
I hated it; like the unscrupulous burglar in the street despises to be apprehended,
I hated it; like walls of the palatial mansion severely repulsed ghastly darkness,
I hated it; like the palpable and intricate heart rebukes the closure of breath, I hated it; like the sensitive tongue in mouth hates to be mercilessly scalded, I hated it; like silver sands of the ocean thoroughly despise acerbic rays of brilliant sun,
I hated it; like the aircraft soaring high in puffs of clouds hates to collide with the ground,
I hated it; like fresh fruits dangling from tree branches hated to become rotten,
I hated it; like the synchronised demeanor of computer hated a host of virus,
I hated it; like the gleaming surface of immaculate marble hates yellow stain,
I hated it; like an innocuous child abhorrently detests to be scolded,
I hated it; like the motorised lift in the edifice hated to close brusquely midway,
I hated it; like the scintillating edge of sword hated to acquire rust,
I hated it; like the grandiloquent ship sailing on the sea hated to sink,
I hated it; like the people with perfect sight hated to transit to blind,
I hated it; like the silken spider in its web hates to lose balance and fall,
I hated it; like the innocent hate to be tyrannised and brutally mutilated,
I hated it; like compact cubes of solid ice hated to melt,
I hated it; as much as the marathon champion hated to lose the race,
I hated it; as much as a cluster of fortified teeth in the mouth hated to painstakingly decay,
I hated it; as much as I hated to relinquish indispensable breath and die,
Oh! Yes the thing that I hated has been hated profoundly since centuries”
Almost a year and few weeks ago, Bojanala Platinum District which is hosting this pioneering crime summit to consolidate a programme of action to squeeze crime to zero for safer and secure communities hosted six incident and accident free international matches at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium.
The successful hosting of the matches, base camps and tourists during the 2010 Football World Cup has raised the stature of our continent, country, province and this district in particular as a tourist destination and opened investment opportunities which we need to take advantage of by sustaining the onslaught against crime and lawlessness.
The spirit of unity and patriotism that prevailed during the tournament demonstrated to the world that we are a people determined to succeed in whatever we do.
Together we carried the African Project on our shoulders with pride and gave criminals no breathing space to spoil the world’s greatest sporting event. We reclaimed our streets and our communities to celebrate our cultures, universal friendship, our diversity and humanity.
Our people experienced a safe and secure environment that they are yearning should be a permanent feature of their lives. We owe it to our communities to sustain the momentum of the onslaught against crime and lawlessness in order to squeeze crime to zero for safer and secure communities.
Our municipalities, traditional leaders, churches, farmers unions, faith-based organisations, non-governmental organisations, community-based organisations, youth and women organisations should assist us to sustain the mobilisation of our communities to support our crime fighting strategies and create a favourable environmentfor our police to execute their responsibilities.
The business sector and in particular Business Against Crime North West has played a significant role in boosting the morale of our police by providing much needed technology to fight crime. Though we still have categories of crime that still need our focus and attention, we appreciate the support for our campaigns and projects to make our communities safer.
The national crime prevention strategy (NCPS) adopted by government in 1996 provides a framework for a multi-dimensional approach to crime prevention. Amongst other things, the strategy provided a means by which government departments should integrate their approaches to problems of crime control and crime prevention.
In keeping with the approach outlined in the strategy, I am convinced that effective and efficient law enforcement and the provision of social crime prevention programs to reduce the occurrence of crime, coordinated at local government level will reduce the fear of contact and trio crimes. During the 2009/10 financial year, our province recorded the highest decreases in murder at -13,4%, cash-in-transit robberies at -33,3% and arson at -20% in the country. In Bojanala Platinum District, we had noted that these translated into -13% of murder in Rustenburg, -8% in Brits but a 10% increase of this category of crime in Mmakau Cluster.
No robbery of cash in transit was recorded and bank related crimes were reduced by -70% in the Rustenburg Cluster whilst no bank robberies were recorded in the Mmakau Clusters.
The Brits Cluster recorded an increase of all categories of crime, contact crimes and property related crimes except murder. Stock-theft increased by 38%, theft out of motor vehicle by 27% whilst all robberies increased by 11% in the cluster.
As we meet in this summit, we need to outright declare that it is time for us to turn the heat on criminals in the Bojanala Platinum District but turn the Brits Cluster into a hot furnace and a no- criminals zone. Communities in Madibeng like those in Rustenburg Moretele, Moses Kotane and Kgetleng hate crime like the innocent hate to be tyrannised and brutally mutilated by heartless criminals.
The arrest of 8 security companies for house robberies in Zinniaville during the FIFA Football World Cup was an eye-opener and has encouraged us to tighten and monitor possible involvement of private security companies in crime in other areas of our province in order to protect consumers against unscrupulous operators they have allowed into their homes masquerading as guardian angels. The Private Security Industry Regulatory Bill in being revised in order to address weaknesses in the regulation of the private security industry.
We need to sustain our zero-tolerance crime prevention operations to disrupt criminal intentions through integrated strategies, improved coordination and implementation to ensure that farmers around Brits, who hate the scourge of farm attacks which were recently reduced by a significant-66,6% feel safer.
Until the elderly farmers, women and children feel safer to enjoy an evening walk or the night gazing at stars from their patio without high walls and electrical fences without the fear of their own shadows, none of us are free as crime denies us our freedom.
Indeed, we concur with the statement by Minister Nathi Mthethwa that, crime, especially serious and violent crime, threatens our value system as a society including the sanctity of life and all freedoms that define our democratic order.
All of our people in our communities hate crime with the same passion hence all our municipalities should be concerned about eliminating disused buildings, overgrown vegetation and dark streets that hide unscrupulous burglars and rapists so that they are apprehended.
We are optimistic that the adoption and implementation of the Crime Prevention Through Environment Design (CPTED) house numbering project carried out at Ramotse RDP Section in Makapanstad, in Moretele Local Municipality will result in speedy arrest of criminals and reduce crime. We call on all municipalities in our province to prioritise adoption and implementation of the CPTED Strategy and the Integrated Provincial Strategy to Prevent and Combat Sexual Offencesin their Integrated Development Plans.
Like our municipalities, our men and women in dignified blue are assigned a very central role in government’s effort to combat violence and crime related matters. The test of police efficiency is the absence of crime and disorder, not the visible evidence of police actions in dealing with it.
Our communities are yearning for accountable, efficient democratic community policing that upholds human rights values and respect for the principle of equality before the law. Victims want to see perpetrators of crime caught, convicted and punished period. In short ladies and gentlemen, zero tolerance law enforcement needs to be intensified in the Bojanala District and throughout our province.
Our police need to hit hard on criminals without giving them any breathing space. This summit is about stacking the fire to turn the heat on them in all of our communities so that feel our pinch and our sting. They need to get an unequivocal message that their escapades and honeymoon in our communities is over.
Illicit mining is costing the Bojanala Platinum district economy millions of rands in lost revenue. Amongst others, the platinum sector alone is said to be losingan estimated R2.3 billion in annual revenue through trans-national organised crime syndicates. It is for this reason that we have to work together with mining houses to turn the heat on criminals involved in this crime which is bleeding our economy.
The joint task team established by the Minister Mthethwa to deal with trans-national organised crime has registered remarkable progress. The team comprising of SAPS Crime Intelligence, National Prosecuting Authority, Special Investigating Unit, Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigation, Department of Home Affairs and the Department of Mineral Resources gives us confidence that the days of organised crime in this district and throughout our province are numbered.
The Committee for Rural Safety that started as a priority for farm safety at National and Provincial level is escalating down to local level because government is concerned about food security for the country.
We regard safety and securities in our farming communities as a priority focus area because any type of crime on a farm is a thread to food security. It is therefore important that SAPS Clusters and Station Commanders, as chairpersons of their respective rural safety committees, should together with traditional leaders and local organised agriculture structures take full responsibility for all farm safety and security aspects of the Rural Safety plan.
These include focusing on syndicates involved in stock theft that is threatening to impoverish many of our subsistence farmers and commercial farmers.
Like the marathon champion hates to lose the race, we are determined to wrestle our streets, roads, towns ,farms, villages, schoolsandcommunities from crime syndicates involved in smuggling of minerals, human trafficking ,stock theft anddrugs. Together we conquered odds against us and ascended to greater heights and with our communities we can do more to squeeze crime to zero for safer and secure communities.
It remains our firm and achievable belief that while there is still significant work to be done in ensuring our people are and feel safe, collectively we have shown that we are certainly up to the task and are capable of addressing the challenges that lie ahead.
As we prepare to roll out crime prevention summits to other three districts in our province, we wish to send a clear message to criminals in this district and throughout the province that we are coming after them with everything we’ve got. We are united, smarter and better coordinated to triumph.
We appreciate the contribution of our traditional leaders and the public transport industry particularly the taxi industry which continues to be trendsetters as a model of a progressive, violence-free business association.
We embrace you as partners against crime, zero tolerance against lawlessness on public roads and whistle-blowers against corruption. We call on the business sector to adopt crime prevention programmes and show active support for community policing forums through their Corporate Social investment Programmes. This will assist us to roll out the street patroller’s programme that was piloted successfully in the Rustenburg Central Business District during the Football World Cup.
The Provincial Community Policing Board, Cluster Community Policing Boards and Community Policing Forums need to be supported in theirwork bymunicipalities, farming communities, traditional leaders, churches, women and youth to ensure that our police stations become centres of hope for all of our communities.
Together with station management, they should ensure that allocated police vehicles are always available to attend to reported cases that require urgent police response and not misused for personal errands.
I should hasten to emphasise that this summit is neither a complaints forum nor a talkshop, but an action focused session to develop a programme of action to mobilise our communities and pull resources for intensified and sustainable action to roll back the frontiers of crime.
It is about integrating and improving implementation of strategies to fight crime, corruption and lawlessness and restoring the culture of respect for human rights, values of Ubuntu for safer homes, safer streets, safer roads, safer public transport, safer hotels and tourist attractions that boost local economies for accelerated development.
In conclusion, let me further in wishing the summit fruitful deliberations emphasise that the war against crime is not a war of the police against criminals. It is a war launched by heartless criminals against innocent, peaceful law abiding citizens in our communities that men and women in dignified blue put their lives on the line daily to protect.
I wish to emphasise that this platform is not about point scoring but about constructive engagement to intensify the war against crime, corruption and lawlessness.
We value your patriotic involvement in the process to help us find solutions to complex but surmountable issues affecting our communities. South Africans need to take up more active role in the fight against crime instead of the easier armchair critic role that the majority opt for if the country is to make inroads with its crime combating initiatives.We trust that your continued partnership will assist us carry the end product of the summit to all of our communities.
Ke a leboga.
