Call for Community Safety and Liaison MEC to step up as criminals lay siege to KZN

Durban — The DA in KwaZulu-Natal has called on Community Safety and Liaison MEC Sipho Hlomuka to step up and take back control of the province as crime reaches unprecedented levels, turning the province into a war zone.

DA KZN community safety and liaison spokesperson Sharon Hoosen said the released crime statistics for the third quarter of 2022 – October to December – showed that criminals were laying siege to the province and innocent people were being attacked and killed daily.

She said that every time the crime statistics were released, KZN featured in the top 30 SAPS stations countrywide for rape and murder cases, while Inanda SAPS remained the country’s rape capital with the highest number of cases reported.

She said KZN had also experienced far too many brutal murders in recent months. During the third quarter, the province contributed the highest percentage, with 24.1% of all murders countrywide.

“The recent spate of shootings in Florida Road, Mariannhill and Estcourt is further testimony to the fact that no place is safe in KZN, particularly for our women, children and most vulnerable,” Hoosen said.

Things that stood out from the recent statistics:

1. Murder: 19.7 people were murdered each day in KZN during the three-month period under review – up by 8.3% from the previous quarter.
2. Rape: 25 people were raped each day – up 13.3% from the previous quarter.
3. Sexual offences: 31 cases were reported each day for the period under review – also up by 13.7%.
4. Common assault: 76 cases were reported per day – up by 3.2%.
5. Carjacking: 11 cars were hijacked per day – up 19.8% from the previous quarter.
6. Robbery: 18 cases of robbery at their premises were reported each day, an increase of 18.5% from the previous quarter.
7. Burglaries: 77 cases of burglary were reported daily – a 10% increase from the previous quarter.
8. Kidnapping went up by 4.7%.

“The statistics do not lie, and this ANC-run provincial government can no longer remain silent,” Hoosen said.

She said criminals have free rein – a clear indication that SAPS has lost the battle against crime. Yet the problems were plain to see:

1. SAPS remains understaffed, under-resourced and under-trained.
2. There are too few investigators and training is inadequate.
3. There is insufficient visible policing.
4. The lack of specialised units is hindering the fight against crime.

Hoosen said that the DA had consistently raised these issues. However, there had been no attempt to ensure that they were resolved and to ensure that KZN had a strong, highly trained and focused police force. Instead, there was shocking apathy from the very individuals who were supposed to ensure people’s safety.

“At the heart of the problem lies a minister of police who needs to clock out. If he had any conscience at all, he would have done so long ago, given his ongoing abysmal performance,” Hoosen said.

“The DA expects MEC Hlomuka to put pressure on his national counterparts. The core problems within KZN’s SAPS must be urgently addressed. We also expect to see the introduction of serious crime-fighting initiatives.

“The alternative is that citizens will start taking the law into their own hands. This is not something we want to see in our communities,” Hoosen said.

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