Guards, cops in hot seat
Security guards qualifications are under the spotlight, writes Mervyn Naidoo
POLICE have identified and plan to arrest seven football fans deemed to be the main instigators of the wanton mayhem that erupted after a “risky” football match at the Moses Mabhida Stadium last week.
But what could and should have been done to prevent the violence and R2.6 million stadium damage, remains the burning question. The arising blame game is far from over.
Football administrators and city officials are blaming the SAPS for not having enough officers on duty and failing to act decisively when the trouble started.
But others, including wellknown sports personality Robert Marawa, believe that the city’s security companies might have dropped the ball because their staff didn’t have the required training and certification to quell the thuggery that unfolded.
“I really think the authorities must not disrespect fans by deploying people who don’t know about crowd control and security because they don’t know how to react,” said Marawa, whose hired car was damaged by fans.
Of the security guards’ qualifications, Marawa said: “Security bosses are handing out bibs to people and paying them R200 afterwards.”
Marawa, who was at the game – the Nedbank Cup semifinal between Kaizer Chiefs and Free State Stars – said he had felt things were “bubbling under” during the course of the match.
At half-time, the Free State stars were leading 2-0 and Kaizer Chief fans had already started venting frustration.
When the final whistle blew with the score still at 2-0, hundreds of fans invaded the pitch. They trashed TV cameras and advertising boards, assaulted stadium employees and attempted to storm through the tunnel to the player’s dressing rooms.
The pitch invasion sparked further violence throughout the stadium. Kaizer Chief fans broke and burned seats, invaded hospitality suites and stoned vehicles in the media parking area.
The chaos continued until midnight, with angry spectators waiting at a stadium exit for the buses ferrying players to pass. All the players and match officials had to be evacuated in police Casspirs and Nyalas.
Afterwards, Premier Soccer League chairperson Irvin Khoza set the ball rolling in the blame game, accusing the SAPS of poor planning.
He also disclosed that the designated head of the public order policing unit had failed to attend a planning meeting ahead of the game, which had been classified as “risky”.
This was after Chiefs fans vented their frustrations after their 3-0 loss to Chippa United at the FNB Stadium in Johannesburg earlier this month, pelting coach Steve Komphela with an array of missiles afterwards.
Khoza said according to the Safety at Sports and Recreational Events Act, the SAPS and other key stakeholders were compelled to be part of planning security measures at matches where hooliganism had been identified as a high risk.
When addressing the media on Wednesday, ethekwini mayor Zandile Gumede also said that security at the stadium was the sole responsibility of the SAPS.
She was backed by Moses Mabhida Stadium manager Vusi Mazibuko, who said the organisers of the game had the required number of security officials (550) for the approximately 30 000 fans in attendance.
“Our deployment of security officers was determined in our pre-planning meetings where risk assessments were done. We realised that there would be a reaction if Chiefs lost. The meeting also determined the type of police units that should be there,” said Mazibuko.
Jacques Grobbelaar, the chief executive of Stadium Management, the company that manages the affairs of the FNB, Orlando, Rand and other Gauteng stadiums, said the SAPS should have had more members on duty.
“I would have insisted that the SAPS deployed at least a 120 fully kitted members from their public order policing unit, not the 10 that were in full view for a match with such a risk matrix.
“On match day, there could be as many as a 1 000 risks, and the SAPS needs to have an immediate reaction to each. But a general from SAPS failed to attend the planning meeting.
“Therefore, the blame lies with the SAPS,” he claimed.
But Grobbelaar did say that he would not have allowed one company alone to provide 375 security officers because some companies tend to use unqualified people to make up the numbers.
“It’s a red light to me.” Grobbler said.
He said every security company was vetted by the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority (PSIRA).
“We invite PSIRA to check that security officials are certified for duty before events. If they don’t comply, they don’t get used,” said Grobbelaar.
A police source close to the investigations into the Sunday’s post-match violence confirmed that at a meeting of various role players this week, PSIRA officials questioned the credentials of security officials on duty.
‘They also took umbrage with the ID numbers being handwritten and some altered on the submitted list of security officers that were on duty,” said the source.
James Dlamini, the owner of Aneme Security Company, which provided the bulk of the officers on duty (375), said all his staff members were certified and vetted by PSIRA before the game.
Asked about the alleged dodgy lists of security officials that PSIRA had scrutinised, Dlamini said: “I never heard of those allegations. We were properly deployed, but SAPS did not have enough officers.”
At the time of going to print, PSIRA had not responded to the Sunday Tribune’s questions.
Responding to criticisms of the SAPS having failed to provide sufficient public order policing presence, KZN’S acting provincial commissioner, Major-general Bheki Langa, said: “We have policed thousands of events in this province and it is the first time that we witnessed such horrific behaviour by spectators.
“We did receive a plan for the policing of the match, which was informed by the risk categorisation and threat assessment.
“We will be probing whether the deployment of SAPS, private security personnel and other security agencies was in place according to the plan, and whether those that were deployed to provide security at the event reacted as they were expected to, and whether they were in a position to prevent the hooliganism and criminality that unfolded,” he said.
“I have appointed a highlevel team from my office to investigate what unfolded last week Saturday,” said Langa.
The police source confirmed that seven instigators of the violence had been identified after viewing online and TV footage and their arrests were imminent.