Road Safety Blog

MEC Kaunda convenes KZN Provincial Crime Summit in Durban

Media

ADDRESS BY THE KWAZULU-NATAL MEC FOR TRANSPORT, COMMUNITY SAFETY AND LIAISON, MR MXOLISI KAUNDA AT THE PROVINCIAL CRIME SUMMIT AT THE ARCHIE GUMEDE CONFERENCE CENTRE IN DURBAN, 4 DECEMBER 2018

• Programme Director
• KwaZulu-Natal Premier: Hon Willies Mchunu
• EThekwini Municipality Deputy Mayor: Cllr Fawza Peer
• National Police Commissioner: General Khehla Sitole
• Secretary for Police Service: Mr Phumudzo Rapea
• SAPS Acting Provincial Commissioner: Lt-General Mkhwanazi
• Head of Department of Community Safety and Liaison: Mr Themba Mavundla
• Head of Department of Transport: Mr Sbusiso Gumbi
• Senior government officials present
• Delegates
• Members of the Media
• Ladies and Gentlemen

Good Morning

Allow me to express our appreciation to all of you for responding to our invitation to this crime summit which seeks to evaluate our crime-fighting strategies and develop new innovations to promote the safety of the people of KwaZulu-Natal.

It is a matter of public record that our country is facing a huge challenge of escalating crime and as a caring government, we cannot sit back and fold our arms when criminals are terrorising our communities.

It is for this reason that we have convened this summit which seeks to achieve, among other things:

• Streamlining and integration of all crime fighting initiatives in the province.
• Identifying key drivers of crime and facilitating relevant interventions involving all stakeholders.
• Placing a renewed emphasis on the relevance of a united and multi-pronged approach in responding to crime; and
• Enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of criminal justice system

Ladies and Gentlemen, since its inception in 1994, this democratic government has prioritised the safety of its citizens. This was a radical departure from the apartheid regime which placed a premium on the safety of the few.

After 1994, the democratic government implemented far-reaching legislative changes to ensure the safety of all its citizens. This include transforming the South African Police from being a tool that was used by the state to further its nefarious political objectives to an institution that is charged to serve all the people of South Africa.

One of the critical milestones during this transformation process was the development of a concept of community policing which emphasized the importance of building community crime fighting structures that work closely with the police.

It is for this reason that in this crime summit, we have invited all stakeholders involved in the fight against crime because this cannot be the sole responsibility of the police, particularly here in KwaZulu-Natal.

Our province is plagued by various forms of crime that have left pain and suffering to the citizens. If you talk about murders, KwaZulu-Natal is leading in the country. From time to time, the province experiences political-related murders, taxi violence, hostel conflicts, faction fights in traditional communities, gender-based violence, stock theft, violent public protests and cross-border crime.

Recently, we have witnessed an increased in violence in schools and tertiary institutions which has resulted in the loss of lives of students and educators. I am pleased to report in this summit that working with the CPF Youth Desk we have launched a compass safety programme to create a safe environment in institutions of higher learning in the province.

It is therefore important that this summit must reflect on how we can put young people at the forefront of our crime-fighting initiatives by strengthening the already existing programmes such as the Schools Safety and Compass Safety programmes.

Ladies and Gentlemen, I am sure you will agree with me that such high-levels of crime in our province call for radical action among all of us charged with the responsibility of securing the people of KwaZulu-Natal.

This drastic and collective action is important if we want to realise the vision set out in the National Development Plan (NDP) which says that “In 2030, people living in South Africa should feel safe and have no fear of crime. They are safe at school, at home, at work and they enjoy an active community life free of fear. Women can walk freely in the streets and children can play safely outside. The police service is a well-resourced professional institution, staffed by highly skilled officers who value their work, serve the community, safeguards life and property without discrimination, protect the peaceful against violence and respects the rights of all to equality and justice.”

Therefore, one of the intentions of this summit is to align our crime fighting and prevention plans with this noble vision.

Ladies and Gentlemen, for us to succeed in improving the quality of life for all the people of KwaZulu-Natal, we must intensify our efforts to tackle crime and build safer communities. Hence our call for a united front against crime.

During the State of the Nation Address, His Excellency President Cyril Ramaphosa, called upon us, particularly the police to accelerate the implementation of the Community Policing Strategy with the aim of gaining the trust of the community and to secure their full involvement and cooperation in the fight against crime.

In this regard, I have made a strong appeal to the SAPS management to ensure that crime fighting structures, particularly the Community Police Forums are given adequate support at all levels of the organisation so that they can become actively involved in crime-fighting.

I have also stressed the importance of the allocation of adequate resources to police stations, including satellite police stations for improved service delivery.

Honourable Premier, in line with the call you made during the State of the Province Address of restoring stability in KwaZulu-Natal, we are continuing to intervene in a number of crime hotspot areas in the province.

Currently, we are intervening in Stulwane outside Bergville after the resurfacing of a violent conflict involving five families in the area.

Though the engagements we have had with the local political leadership, Inkosi Hlongwane and the feuding families, it appears that the source of conflict among the families is stock theft.

Through our intervention in Nongoma and Ladysmith, we are beginning to witness signs of stability as police are making breakthroughs in arresting people who are at the centre of violent conflicts that have plagued these areas. I have urged the police to be on high alert in hostels around eThekwini such as Glebelands and KwaMashu to ensure that violence does not flare up again. We are also closely monitoring the Tehuise, Dalton and KK hostels as they are often used as hideouts by criminals who are causing instability in Glebelands and KwaMashu hostels.

Ladies and Gentlemen, for us to achieve peace and stability in our province as per the instruction of the Premier, we must work tirelessly to reduce and remove everything that drives crime and criminality in our society. This include illegal firearms, drugs and alcohol.

For us to succeed in this, we need to build positive societal attitudes and values by increasing the strength, capacity and resilience of individuals, families and communities in relation to the known risk factors that make communities unsafe.

We must also reflect on what we can do to enhance our criminal justice system effectiveness and efficiency. This summit must seriously look into how we can capacitate the entire criminal justice system to operate effectively, efficiently and predictably. This will both improve public confidence in the criminal justice system and serve as a deterrent for crime.

As I conclude, I would like to remind this summit that next year, the country will be holding general elections.

Therefore, it is important that we also put our heads together on how we are going to create a conducive environment for peaceful, free and fair elections.

Working with the Multi-Party Political Intervention Committee, which we have just resuscitated, we must proactively identify areas which present signs of political instability and urgently intervene in those areas.

Finally, another issue which is critical for the safety of the people of KwaZulu-Natal is that we have entered a busy festive season period which is characterised by influx of visitors in tourism destinations and shopping malls in the province. Through the Integrated Festive Season Safety Plan that we will be launching on Saturday in Port Shepstone, we will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that our visitors and the citizens of KwaZulu-Natal have peaceful and safe festive season.

With these remarks, let me once again thank you for coming to this summit. I have no doubt that you are going to be disciplined throughout the programme so that we can ultimately achieve our goal of creating a safe, stable and peaceful province which is a gateway to the country and the world.

Exit mobile version