Committee tears into report on Glebelands

A REPORT on the functioning of the uMlazi police station and the provincial task team dealing with the Glebelands Hostel crisis was ineffective and meaningless, members of the national portfolio committee on police said yesterday.

Provincial police said that among the reasons for failure to resolve murders at the hostel was the unwillingness of witnesses to come forward.

The police said some complainants withdrew cases before trial, while others did not come to court to testify.

According to the report, since 2014, none of the 41 firearms found at the hostel during police raids had been linked to any crime committed there. Fourteen of these firearms were found this year.

National Freedom Party MP Phillip Mhlongo said: “It is corruption or lack of action on the police’s part to act on tip-offs that scare people off.

“Police once raided the house of a police officer in Glebelands and an arsenal of guns was found. I was told that the man, who is said to be working right in this same station, was taken in just for questioning,” Mhlongo said.

He said that when William Mthembu and Thokozani Maci were shot dead in a parking lot at a Montclair shopping centre, it took a provincial task team to arrest some of the perpetrators, despite police having CCTV footage showing the shooting from different angles.

The DA tore into the report for not indicating what had been done to address alleged police involvement in the hostel killings.

DA MP Zakhele Mbhele questioned police on the progress made on the allegations.

“What has been done to root out those rotten apples within the service? “According to this report, it is clear that the majority of cases reported are firearm-related. Is there a strategy in place to trace these firearms and bring the perpetrators to book?

“You speak of witnesses not wanting to come forward. It’s crystal clear there’s collusion between your members and the criminals,” Mbhele said.

The police admitted that greed, unlawful collection of money from residents and selling of beds were the cause of conflict at the hostel.

Acting provincial police commissioner Major-General Bheki Langa said: “Unfortunately, some incidents happened inside the houses, not on the streets where we patrol.

“People are scared, but lately we have had people coming forward with information,” he said.

“Currently, we have public order policing, a tactical response team and the national intervention unit deployed at the hostel.”

Francois Beukman, committee chairperson, said a report would be compiled and tabled at the National Assembly with recommendations.

He requested a comprehensive report from the provincial and uMlazi police on their plans to resolve the issues.