Committee receives Anti-Gang Unit update
THE newly reintroduced SAPS AntiGang Unit has since November identified 60 gangs across the country, with at least 20 operating in the Western Cape.
This was revealed by Major-General Leon Rabie yesterday when he briefed the police portfolio committee on the police’s anti-gang strategy and the rollout of the Anti-Gang Unit.
Rabie noted that the unit had made 334 arrests, monitored 70 operations, and confiscated 104 firearms and 13 vehicles during the period under review. He also told of gang leaders being identified and profiled.
According to Rabie, more than 3 000 dockets were either being investigated or handed over for prosecution.
“There has been successes of arrests. We are looking at proper witness protection,” Rabie said.
He told the committee of implementation of school safety strategy in the Western Cape to create a safe environment for children in more than 1 500 schools.
Rabie said there were plans for drafting a safer city model with stakeholders and to launch a youth and spiritual crime prevention strategy.
He, however, noted the environmental design of areas, which was hindering policing in the province.
“We are already engaging with provincial government on what must be completed. It is critical that we get all relevant stakeholders on par,” Rabie added.
Briefing the portfolio committee, former Western Cape Cosatu leader Tony Ehrenreich said there had been growing levels of criminality.
“Some criminals use the constitution and legislation to defend their own interests. We need to find a way to respond to this urgently,” he said.
A presentation by police and prisons union Popcru to the committee said they were dismayed with the antigang strategy because it did not provide tangible and concrete solutions to gangsterism.
The union called for the establishment of task teams in all the provinces to fight gangsterism. “The task teams should be made up of officers with specialised training, particularly in intelligence gathering so as to be proactive in dealing with this scourge.”
Responding to some of the issues that were raised, Police Minister Bheki Cele said policing would be specialised.
He said more training was needed for the unit’s members.
Police Commissioner Khehla Sitole said the Western Cape had a fully fledged unit and that other provinces would have task teams.
Sitole said a work study had been commissioned to get a formal structure for the other provinces.