Minister of police oversight and community safety, Reagan Allen, has requested the Police Ombudsman investigate the alleged inefficiencies of SAPS during the Swellendam protests.
The Western Cape is the only province to establish a specialised Police Ombudsman, a role instituted through the Western Cape Community Safety Act of 2013. The mission of the Western Cape Police Ombudsman is to augment the performance and proficiency of law enforcement services while fostering better interactions between the police and local communities.
This is achieved by conducting inquiries into grievances related to police inefficacy or the deterioration of relationships between the police and any community.
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Minister Allen wrote to the Western Cape Police Ombudsman (WCPO) to formally request an investigation into several concerns related to the operations and deployment of the South African Police Service (SAPS) during the violent protests in Swellendam on both 16 August and 20 September 2023.
The matters requested for investigation include:
- The utilisation of crime intelligence by SAPS
- The timeliness and adequacy of SAPS response and resourcing
- The visibility and presence of Public Order Policing Services (POPS)
The damages caused during both protests have significantly hampered the municipality’s operations and its capacity to address service-related issues.
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In light of the fact that SAPS possessed sufficient information, including an estimate of the expected number of protestors, it seems that SAPS was either inadequately prepared or not prepared at all to prevent and address the events that transpired during these protests, despite prior alerts.
Public infrastructure suffered millions of rands in damages, and there were incidents of looting in shops. The presence of adequate law enforcement could have potentially averted all of these unfortunate outcomes.
‘Those responsible for these damages should not only be held criminally liable but civil claims should also be instituted against them. Protest is recognised as a right in our country’s Constitution; however, infringing on others’ rights and destroying critical public infrastructure is not.’
‘As I await feedback from the (WCPO), I urge SAPS to ensure that their POPS unit has the required resources and equipment so that they are able to swiftly respond to any other similar matters. Our residents deserve to live in communities where peace and order are at all times maintained,’ concluded Minister Allen.
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