‘Proaction, urgency needed to combat police killings, poaching’
POLICE are not being proactive enough to stop cop killings, and are not acting with enough urgency in curbing rhino poaching, parliament’s police portfolio committee said.
The committee heard yesterday presentations from the SAPS on plans to minimise the number of deaths of police members on duty.
The committee was briefed on the roles of the 10111 emergency call centres in protecting police officers responding to a crime, the tactical response team and the national intervention unit which would act to stabilise volatile situations such as taxi violence.
But committee members were unimpressed with the presentation, saying only a small portion was proactive.
Committee chair and ANC MP Francois Beukman said the issue of police deaths was a national crisis which could only be solved by looking at the ways “other jurisdictions” such as the United States, Russia and South America were dealing with the problem.
“SAPS must take the lead. We must be proactive. We have a budget, a big budget.”
DA member Dianne Kohler Barnard said the plan was 93% reactive.
“The body armour and body cameras are reactive.
“Police officers in South Africa are five times more likely to die on duty than in the USA, and Canada only had three police deaths in one year while we are at 60.”
The IFP’s Albert Mncwango questioned the role of crime intelligence in minimising police deaths.
“These police deaths smack of a well orchestrated plan . . . Why can’t criminal intelligence detect these things?”
SAPS General Vineshkumar Moonoo, meanwhile, told the committee that while South Africa had developed good working relationships with Mozambique in a bid to combat rhino poaching, it was problematic that Mozambique would not allow its citizens to be extradited to stand trial.
Of the 212 people arrested and currently on the court rolls in South Africa for poaching, 80 were Mozambicans.
The committee was also briefed on the acquisition of specialised equipment for police teams working to combat poaching in the Kruger National Park.
Beukman said this was not happening fast enough.
“There is not enough urgency,” he said after being told some equipment had still not been acquired or had been delayed.