Neighborhood watches are successful precisely because government doesn’t control them

Issued by Cilliers Brink MP – DA Shadow Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs
26 Jul 2021 in News

Please find attached soundbite by Cilliers Brink MP.

The DA rejects calls by the premier of KwaZulu-Natal Sihle Zikalala this weekend calling for stricter regulation of neighbourhood watches.

The Premier’s remarks show how out of touch he is with the situation in his own province.

It also appears as if he wants to express sympathy with those with participated in the looting and violence that claimed hundreds of lives and devastated large parts of the KZN economy.

Neighbourhood watches are not the problem in KZN or any other province.

Neighbourhood watches protected communities when the South African Police Service (SAPS) was missing in action.

The inability of SAPS and other law enforcement agencies to protect lives and businesses was clear as day.

But here’s the most important point ignored by Premier Zikalala: neighbourhood watches are successful precisely because they are not controlled by the ANC government.

The Premier should withdraw his statement and focus on rebuilding his province – something he cannot do without the help and cooperation of communities