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The Gauteng Provincial Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Community Safety and administrative heads of Metro Police Departments from Gauteng’s metropolitan municipalities have announced a joint operation aimed to strengthen crime prevention.
This follows a meeting held on Tuesday.
According to chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Community Safety, Dr Bandile Masuku, the purpose of the gathering was to discuss and share the work being done to combat crime and enforce Municipal by-laws in their respective areas.
The Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD) talked about their goals, which are in line with their 2040 Gauteng Development Strategy. These goals include preventing and reducing crime, injuries, and loss of life through teamwork with different agencies.
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During the meeting, JMPD emphasised that it wants to ensure residents follow the City’s by-laws regarding land invasions, street trading, waste management, electricity and advertising.
The law enforcement agency said it also wants to improve traffic safety by making sure people follow the rules of the road. They also want to empower communities by providing information about road safety, following the by-laws and preventing crime.
The JMPD also emphasised the need for support and collaboration between them and the people they serve.
During the JMPD’s traffic enforcement efforts for the 2022/23, 130,246 vehicles were stopped, 102,481 of these searched, along with 96,256 people. As a result, they took 791 vehicles out of service, issued 1.831,907 citations and impounded 64 taxis and 227 other vehicles.
At the meeting, the Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD) expressed that it has three main areas they focus on.
The first is road policing, which aims to minimise road accidents and keep traffic flowing smoothly. They make sure vehicles and drivers are safe and check for stolen vehicles, illegal firearms, stolen goods, drugs, and other crimes. They also work on by-law policing, which means enforcing the laws set by the government.
They ensure that informal and formal traders have the right licenses and search them for illegal goods and drugs.
Lastly, they focus on crime prevention. They help the South African Police Service (SAPS) prevent crime by doing road policing and enforcing the by-laws mentioned earlier.
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During the meeting, the TMPD presented their enforcement outcomes for the 2022/23 FY.
They executed 64 regional by-law policing operations and 34 specialized by-law policing operations. Additionally, they carried out 41 regional illegal dumping operations and 25 regional cable theft operations.
These efforts were aimed at ensuring the safety and well-being of the community by addressing specific issues within their jurisdiction.
The meeting also discussed the efforts of the Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD).
Their main goal is to reduce accidents and promote road safety. They focus on issues like driver fitness, vehicle fitness, regulating traffic, controlling overloading, and dealing with road accidents.
The EMPD achieved some positive outcomes from their operations for the 2022/23 FY, such as arresting 1,123 criminals, executing 41 crime prevention plans, conducting 39 joint crime prevention plans, and carrying out 24 operations in high-risk areas.
They have also implemented 34 social crime prevention plans and conducted 118 awareness campaigns. Additionally, they recorded 1,030 violations related to EMPD By-laws, conducted 51 operations to enforce the by-laws, and issued 292,903 fines for traffic violations.
In addition, the meeting highlighted the role of the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (PSIRA) in effectively regulating security service providers. They aim to ensure that private security providers adhere to a code of conduct and meet minimum standards.
The PSIRA works together with the South African Police Service (SAPS) and other law enforcement agencies to conduct inspections and investigations to maintain effective regulation.
During the period from April 2022 to March 2023, they conducted 43,642 compliance inspections of security service providers, which was a 16% increase compared to the previous year.
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