Please find attached English and Afrikaans soundbites by Ian Cameron MP.
The Democratic Alliance’s nationwide audit of 1,025 police stations found that more than half could not be reached by telephone. The audit was conducted across all nine provinces using officially listed contact numbers.
A total of 571 stations did not answer, while 454 answered one or both listed numbers. This means that 56% of police stations could not be reached, while only 44% answered.
Limpopo recorded the lowest reachability rate, with 78 out of 87 stations failing to answer. Free State recorded the second-lowest rate. The audit also found that several high-crime priority stations across the country could not be reached.
The findings are consistent with issues identified during the DA’s oversight visit to the 10111 Emergency Communication Centre, where officials reported staff shortages, communication challenges, outdated technology and difficulties contacting police stations.
A police service that cannot consistently be reached by the public cannot effectively fulfil its mandate.
The DA will submit the findings of this audit to the Minister of Police and the National Commissioner and call for corrective action to improve public access to police stations.