South Africa

WATCH: Police in riot gear escort matrics to dance

A clip showing attendees of a matric dance receiving a full riot police escort is currently going viral on Facebook.

The clip, showing a police cavalcade marching as smartly dressed matrics walk towards the dance amid green smoke after alighting from an armoured vehicle, is reportedly from a matric dance in Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal.

While some expressed outrage at an apparent waste of police resources, with a few even comparing the situation to when traffic police escorted the Guptas after they infamously landed at Waterkloof Air Force Base for a wedding, others have taken the opposite view, applauding the police for what one user called a “great gesture”.

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According to The Mercury, KwaZulu-Natal acting provincial commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi sided with those outraged on social media, saying the conduct of the police in the clip goes against the rules and an investigation will take place.

“I am deeply disturbed by what I observed,” Lieutenant General Mkhwanazi said.

READ MORE: Police shot while escorting paramedics at Gugulethu

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“I have instructed that these police officials that appear in that video be investigated in terms of our disciplinary regulations as their conduct is not in line with our code of conduct and the objectives of the SAPS as per the constitution of this country.

“I am in agreement with the majority of citizens who voiced their concern on social media, that our resources could have been put to better use.”