The statement follows an oversight inspection by the DA Shadow Minister of Police, Zakhele Mbhele MP and DA member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament, Beverley Schäfer, to the Delft Police Station in Cape Town.
Please find attached English and IsiZulu soundbites by Mr Mbhele. Pictures can be found here, here, here and here.
Today, the Democratic Alliance (DA) conducted an oversight inspection of the Delft Police Station in Cape Town. According to the 2017/18 crime statistics, the station has the fifth highest number of recorded murder cases in the country.
The DA met with the station commander who admitted that the understaffed and under-resourced police station is struggling to effectively fight crime in the community. The national police to resident ratio stands at 1:383. However, Delft has 1 police officer per 642 residents, despite the community being besieged by gang-related violent crimes.
The failing ANC government is solely to blame for the policing challenges in Delft. Whilst the ANC continues to deliberately use police resources in the Western Cape as a political tool, the City of Cape Town and the Western Cape Provincial Government have gone above and beyond to keep local communities safe – regardless of their limited mandate.
The fact that the government spends R9.1 million to protect one VIP but only R1 500 per South African is proof that there is money available for the South African Police Services (SAPS) to fight crime.
The SAPS need proper equipment, training and adequate staff to protect the people. Our communities have become war-zones and we need a professional police service which serves and protects all South Africans, not just the elites.
Right now, however, while our most vulnerable communities suffer daily, it is necessary for the army to be deployed to these communities so that our people can feel safe in their homes and on the streets.
A DA-led government will prioritise the safety of all citizens and fight against the unacceptably high levels of crime in the county.