The power of convictions: When law enforcement works

Reporting crimes can be a dreary affair, especially when you’re convinced nothing is going to come of it.

Why put yourself through the ordeal if that’s the case? This is why narratives of convictions are so important. The public must be aware that their complaints do not fall on deaf ears.

There must be at least a degree of conviction that something is going to happen when I report something to the cops.

Without that conviction, not only will we have less information coming in about crimes that have happened, but also fewer informants who can assist in preventing crime.

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A step forward for law enforcement

So when the country hears about Norwood’s station commander being arrested, it means a lot.

For the sake of the criminal case, the case is still ongoing and the allegations remain just that.

For the sake of the public though, it sends the message that the law enforcement apparatus is serious about law enforcement.

It’s encouraging for a public consistently bombarded with news of corruption to finally hear of a case where a person is taken on for alleged fraud—a cop no less.

We can have more faith in the legal system knowing that the same system has placed its crosshairs on a person we might have previously thought of as untouchable.

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The message of accountability

And yet, the provincial anticorruption unit arrested the dude. He may be out on an affordable bail of R3 000, and he may be found not guilty in the end.

Whatever the outcome, it does the country a world of good to show that at least some anticorruption state apparatus is functional.

When they level up to take on the political class, it may be another story, but at least they’re doing something.

The provincial legislature committee spokesperson indicated that the alleged actions of the arrested commander “are embarrassing, unacceptable and erode the confidence of communities in the criminal justice system.” He’s not wrong.

More importantly, they reaffirmed that such an arrest sends a strong message that no person is above the law and encouraged people to report any similar incidents to the committee.

When we’re typically hit with news of state apparatus being mismanaged, poorly funded, or just plain failing, we are right to be upset.

We do, however, need to pay attention to matters like this when the system actually works because it could be easy to get bogged down among the negativity.

It’s these stories that make us think twice when we’re too lazy to go to the police station to report a crime or, worse, when we think that the police will do nothing, so we take the law into our own hands.

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Building trust in law enforcement

When law enforcement functions, it’s good that they tell us about it.

It’s great that we hear about it, it’s awesome when we act because of it. It’s amazing when this system works because of it.

Really, a functional system begins with these little wins, and they grow into the big wins. National Director of Public Prosecutions boss Shamila Batohi may not have done much, but at least some underlying structures are starting to show signs of appetite to fix the country.

And since we’re celebrating these small wins, may I just remind the state anticorruption apparatus about this lesser-known dude named Ace?

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