| 2024/07/24 |
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Media Statement KIMBERLEY – The Provincial Commissioner of the SAPS in the Northern Cape, Lieutenant General Koliswa Otola together with her Deputy Provincial Commissioners and the Provincial Head of DPCI, is currently presenting the first provincial review session for the first quarter of the 2024/2025 financial year. The Head of the Department at the office of the Transport, Safety and Liaison, Mr Rodney Pieterse also joined the session. The two day session is hosted at the Kimberley SAPS Gymnasium in Kimberley and will conclude on 25 July 2024. In attendance are the five District Commissioners, Provincial Heads and the 92 Station Commanders as well as representatives from the Provincial Community Policing Board and Labour Unions. The newly appointed MEC for Transport, Safety and Liaison, Mr Bentley Vass and representatives from the Department of Transport, Safety and Liaison are attending the session via a virtual platform. The two day session is facilitated by the Deputy Provincial Commissioner for Corporate Services, Major General Thabo Mphuthi in conjunction with the Provincial Head of Organisational Development and Strategic Management, Brigadier Merle Coghlan. In her welcoming remarks, General Otola outlined the purpose of the Review Session placing emphasis on certain issues. She indicated that for the next two days, we will look at the performance of the stations, districts and the province in its entirety. What systems and plans are in place and how it is aligned? Operation Shanela will continue and high density operations will proceed and must be improved. Deployments must be strategic, detectives must execute weekly tracing operations, roadblocks and VCP’s must be conducted, compliance inspections must be enhanced at liquor outlets and second hand dealers. SAPS is a system driven organisation and we must ensure that data integrity is correct. Correct capturing of information is not being done as expected and it negatively influences the overall performance of the province. Despite all the successes and actions conducted, the capturing of data on the OPAM remains a concern. Stations are not capturing the information on the systems and it must be addressed and rectified immediately. This performance is the responsibility of all in the province and we must take responsibility and be held accountable for the crime in our respective environments. The Provincial Commissioner reiterated her discontent about members at stations who continue to turn away community members who visit the Community Service Centres to register cases. The citizens have the right to register cases at any police station and the case will then be transferred to the relevant station. Commanders must become aware of their members’ conduct and problems, especially domestic violence issues, where our own members are implicated. Suicides among our members is a concern, commanders must refer members for counselling and make follow-ups as to why they do not honour their appointments with Employee Health and Wellness. Absenteeism, corruption and misconduct is a great concern, commanders must stop protecting their members and fear the unions. Their responsibility is to uphold and enforce discipline in the organization. Visits to stations after hours are not being done by Station Commanders. We are all representing the SAPS and we have a responsibility to protect and uphold the image of the organisation. Messages of Support were delivered by the Provincial CPF Board and the Labour Union, POPCRU. General Otola appreciated the messages of support and concerns and issues raised by the CPF and POPCRU and indicated that it will be addressed. In his Keynote Address delivered via the virtual platform, MEC, Bentley Vass indicated that local government is always confronted with protests, roads are in most instances faced with Taxi Association disputes about routes and ranks. Human settlements are bedevilled by construction mafias and other social ills. In Traditional Affairs we are faced with illegal initiation schools an abduction of girl children for forced marriages. Crime fighting is a societal problem and or a challenge. All this means that we will need to spearhead and drive the District Delivery Model as lead departments. Measuring performance is important, as it indicates how well an institution is meeting its aims and objectives and which policies and processes are working. Performance information plays a significant role in planning for measuring the priorities of SAPS and making the best use of available data is crucial for improving the execution the SAPS mandate. Collaborating with internal and external partners, specialized units such as DPCI, forensic services and crime intelligence, will work together to tackle these challenges efficiently. Community Police Forums need not to be acknowledged and launched for the sake of it but need to be resourced, trained and developed. We need to be circumspect of unconsciously encouraging vigilantism that masquerade as crime busters at the expediency. Building strong partnerships with other law enforcement agencies and the community must be prioritized. Partnerships with the CPF’s, the private sector, religious fraternities and business sector and organizations such as traditional councils, organised labour, non –governmental agencies dedicated to the fight against crime and those advocating against women and children and vulnerable groups. Over the next two days, Provincial Components and Districts will present their performance and it will be deliberated upon. Ends
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