Cele’s Covid crime stats disclaimer an attempt to deflect from his failure

Police minister Bheki Cele’s repeated disclaimer that the latest crime statistics were distorted by the Covid-19 lockdown is an attempt to deflect from his failures, say concerned groups.

Official data coming from the second quarter of 2021 shows that for most categories, there has been double-digit percentage increases compared to the previous quarter.

The country has been under lockdown since March last year, with cyclic hardening and relaxing of restrictions as the Covid-19 waves of infections continue to rise and stabilise. Cele’s briefing to media emphasised that the double-digit increases were a result of abnormal numbers and patterns brought on by the lockdown, suggesting that overall, this is no cause for alarm.

But political scientist at Stellenbosch University Dr Guy Lamb points out that almost all crime categories increased dramatically compared to the same period last year which was during the hard lockdown.

Also Read: Crime stats: ‘Never seen before’ but not as bad as it looks, assures Cele

“The numbers of reported crime in most crime categories for April-June 2021 still did increase when compared to the same period in 2019, but was less dramatic than when compared to 2020. For example, murder increased by 6.7%, attempted murder by 12.5, and common robbery by 8.9%.”

Are South Africans to believe there’s been no dramatic crime increase?

During the South African Police Service (SAPS) presentation, numbers from the periods before the lockdown were used to compare the increase under “normal” conditions versus those under lockdown, to illustrate for instance that while sexual offenses increased by a whopping 47.1% compared to the last quarter, this increase only amounts to a 5% increase when compared to pre-lockdown periods.

The Democratic Alliance and lobby group Action society both vehemently disagree that this is no cause for alarm. They have accused the government of trying to cover up its failure to use the lockdown to adequately prepare for the gradual return to normal in terms of movement, allowing them to combat crime levels which were already abnormally high before the pandemic struck.

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Action Society spokesperson Ian Cameron lamented Cele’s attitude towards the shocking trends seen in the latest report, which includes that 5 760 people have been killed in SA between April and the end of June this year.

Cameron has accused Cele of hiding behind Covid-19 to hide his own incompetence.

“To say that the figures are distorted, we all know that. South Africans are not stupid. We know that the lockdown, especially in the beginning had an impact on crime. Its actually shocking that they could have used the time during the lockdown to better prepare themselves for what might be coming, yet they did nothing.”

He opines that the police are in worse shape than at the beginning of the lockdown.

Cameron also doubts that the true extent of gender-based violence, including rape and sexual assault, may be much higher than is being presented.

This is because of expected lower rates of reporting due to lockdown restrictions.

“I also think that most sexual offenses were much higher during parts of lockdown, but once again, reporting was lower. I think it is important that we give special attention to the rape issue because it is already something that’s drastically under-reported, and for that reason it is something that we need to put the spotlight on.”

DA MP, Andrew Whitfield says Cele tried to ‘whitewash’ the crime statistics by stating that they were “high and unnatural” as a result of the lockdown.

“The prevalence of violent crime is still shocking and abnormal. The murder rate is up by 60.2%, with a total of 5 760 people losing their lives during this period. Contact crimes saw a 60.6% increase and aggravated robberies went up by a staggering 92.2%,” he points out.