LIMPOPO – According to a statement issued by the DA Provincial Leader, Jacques Smalle, over the weekend more than 50 uniformed police officers were used to oversee and protect ANC branch elections and nomination meetings around Limpopo.
He further said it is a deplorable abuse of state resources by the ANC, which would rather protect itself than protect the people of South Africa.
“I have written to the Limpopo Police Commissioner, Lt. Gen Jimmy Ledwaba, to probe the deployment of more than 50 police officers to ANC regional branch meetings this weekend, and I have alerted Police Minister, Nkosinathi Nhleko. The Commissioner must also explain reports that more police officers will be used by the ANC this coming weekend,” he said.
“It is unacceptable that the ANC is using the police services as a private security firm to babysit their unruly members during meetings due to heightened factional infighting.
“The ANC’s internal collapse should not be taking police officers off the beat where they should be protecting South Africans from crime,” he said.
“The DA can confirm that in two specific cases, evidence of police involvement in the ANC meetings has been presented to the DA. At the ANC’s Harry Gwala branch meeting in Giyani this weekend, where new leaders were nominated and regional leadership candidates were being finalised, police officers were involved. In Mopani region, where the ANC branch holds its conference to nominate and elect new leadership this coming weekend, police officers will be involved,” he said.
“According to the latest crime stats, crimes such as common assault sexual offences, murder, attempted murder, aggravated robbery and hijacking has significantly increased in Limpopo, yet the ANC would rather commandeer the police for its internal purposes, rather than fighting crime.
“With the unprecedented crime statistics in Limpopo and rural crime on the rise, we expect police to deploy officers in crime hotspots rather than to babysit ANC meetings,” he said.
“We urge the Limpopo police Commissioner to stop these abnormal deployments of our police officers and to ensure that an investigation into ANC abuse of the police is immediately instituted,” said Smalle.
Provincial Police Spokesperson, Brig Motlafela Mojapelo said the deployment of police personnel at any given time and place is purely an operational matter which is the prerogative of police management at various levels including commanders.
“The police are therefore not answerable to any political party and consequently, we are unfortunately unable to respond to your enquiry,” said Mojapelo.
