South Africa's new police minister, Senzo Mchunu
vinegarSouth Africa's new police minister, Senzo Mchunu, has promised an overhaul of the police management system as part of a “decisive” plan aimed at curbing the country's “intolerable” crime rates.
Mchunu, who was appointed to the department as part of President Cyril Ramaphosa's unity cabinet, promised “tough” measures to tackle a surge in contact crimes such as murder, rape, hijacking and kidnapping.
Speaking at a press conference in Pretoria on Monday, Governor Mchunu said crime rates were on the rise across the country but that their nature varied from province to province and this needed to be taken into account when implementing the National Crime Prevention Strategy.
Urgent interventions will be undertaken to tackle the rise in gang violence in the Western Cape, parts of Nelson Mandela Bay and Gauteng, while internal measures will be strengthened to prevent weapons from passing from police stations into the hands of criminals.
Mchunu said the construction mafia operating in the country would continue to receive “priority treatment” to address the impact on the industry and the wider economy.
“The genuine quest for economic reform can be addressed through the right channels and existing policy provisions, without taking over construction sites or resorting to extortion to get business,” he said.
At a policy level, Mchunu said the police department would prioritise reform of the South African Police Act as it was “outdated” and needed to be updated “to bring it in line with the demands of modern crime fighting and prevention”.
A national policy on policing will be developed that takes into account the needs and priorities of each state, as well as minimum norms and standards for police stations to help ensure they have the resources they need to serve their residents.
“Central to our strategy is the urgent need to professionalise the South African Police Service. [SAPS] “And we want to instill positive ethics, patriotism and an understanding that a police officer's first duty is always to serve and protect the people,” Mchunu said.
Rooting out corruption and weeding out corrupt police officers will “remain a top priority.”
“Any misconduct by SAPS members will not be tolerated and action will be taken. We want to change the negative perception of police officers. People must respect and trust police officers and feel safe in their presence,” said the new Police Minister.
He promised to invest in technology to help police perform their jobs, improve training, refresher courses, new vehicles and other resources.
The budget will be amended to boost crime intelligence capacity, improve training for investigators and strengthen oversight of what Mchunu describes as the “backbone” of the police force.
Gun laws will be strengthened to reduce the number of guns on the streets.
“There are too many guns on our streets and guns continue to be the weapon of choice for many violent crimes. We are stepping up our efforts to get illegal guns off our streets and enforce gun control measures,” he said.
These include a review of the laws regulating the private security industry.
Mchunu said anyone who attacks police officers, whether on or off duty, is “declaring war on the state and its people” and will face the full force of the law.
The new minister expressed confidence in the National Police Commissioner, General Fanny Masemola, and his team.
“We're wary of this, but we expect them to continue to work hard to get it.
We have given ample powers to the National Commissioner;
“We will carry out our duties with oversight and leadership,” he said.
Mchunu is due to present this year's budget and cabinet programme to parliament on Tuesday.