| 2024/10/11 |
|
Speaker notes for the National Commissioner of the South African Police Service, General SF Masemola (SOEG) at the launch of the 2024/2025 National Safer Festive Season Operations Moretele, Mamelodi, Gauteng Friday, 11 October 2024
• Honourable Minister of Police, Mr Senzo Mchunu
Good morning to all of you gathered here today and thank you for your overwhelming support as we launch the annual National Safer Festive Season Operations. From now until 31 January 2025, we will continue with intensifying our campaign for heightened police visibility across the country. Citizens can expect to see law enforcement visibility in their communities disrupting criminal activities that may want to pose a threat to law-abiding citizens who worked hard throughout the year and want to enjoy the holidays in a peaceful environment. We will continue with intensifying our operations full steam ahead to ensure all people in our country, including those who will be visiting our shores during the festive season, are and feel safe. South Africa is not a playground for criminals and we will be stamping the authority of the State during the festive season and beyond. We will continue to work together with our sister government departments within the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security Cluster to pool resources as we advance our fight against crime to make provision for the safety of all people in South Africa. As law enforcement agencies, acting decisively against any form of criminality that poses a threat to the safety of the communities that we serve is our business and we will leave no stone unturned. Focus areas For the 2024/2025 Safer Festive Season Operations which are starting today, we have come up with Nine Focus Areas that we will be targeting and they are: Focus area one: We will continue to intensify our campaigns aimed at eradicating Gender-Based Violence and ensuring protection of members of vulnerable groups, including the elderly, people living with disabilities and LGBTQI+ people; Focus area two: During this festive season and beyond, we will continue to combat trio crimes; namely, carjacking, robberies at residential premises and business robberies. Minister, this festive season launch happens at the back of mass murders which happened in Lusikisiki in the Eastern Cape two weekends ago which left 18 people dead. A suspect has since been arrested and appeared in court. As we act decisively to deal with the scourge of crime, we will be deploying more resources in murder hotspot areas to bring about stability in communities to ensure residents feel safe; Focus area three: Working together with the Border Management Authority and the Department of Home Affairs, ours is to continue to pay special attention to enhancing border security, searching of stolen properties, human trafficking, tracking wanted suspects, confiscating and seizing drugs; Focus area four: The illicit economy is a crime trend that we will working hard to clampdown. Our campaign to combat illicit drugs trafficking, illicit mining, illicit and counterfeit goods continues unabated; Focus area five: Minister, we will continue to enforce legislation in respect of firearms, liquor, second-hand goods, including enforcing the Safety at Sports and Recreational Events Act (SASREA) to enhance safety of residents; Focus area six: The crime of extortion is rearing its ugly head in the country and we want to assure all South Africans that extortionists will meet law enforcement head on as we move with speed to crackdown on this form of criminality which has endangered the safety of business people and ordinary citizens alike; Focus area seven: Critical infrastructure is the backbone of this country’s economy. For this reason, combatting economic and infrastructure crimes by preventing illegal activities that cause damage to critical infrastructure by uprooting criminal elements from society that give rise to this form of crime is our seventh key focus area; Focus area eight: Working together with Metro Police and Traffic Police, we will continue to enforce municipal By-Laws and cracking down on hijacked buildings; and lastly Focus area nine: Again, working together with Metro Police and Traffic Police across the country, as law enforcement, we will continue to enhance Road Safety including combatting of driving whilst under the influence of liquor, removing un-roadworthy vehicles from the roads and ensuring motorists adhere to speed limit. From today onwards, we will continue to ensure we stabilise identified top 30 high contact and violent crime stations through high visibility and combat approach. All the nine provinces must continue to prioritise their top 10 high contact and violent crime stations which is inclusive of those appearing on the national top 30. As I conclude, we call upon all law-abiding citizens to continue to respect the rule of law, work together with the Police to ensure it is all hands on deck to Combat crime through decisive Police action and robust community involvement. I THANK YOU!
|
|
|
