With the national conversation on violent crime gaining momentum, City leaders say Parliament’s latest move to examine conviction failures may finally open the door to long-awaited policing reforms.
This moment, they believe, could shift attention toward a justice system struggling to keep pace with gang-related violence, illegal firearms, and drug trafficking across the metro.
Details of the City’s position surfaced through its latest public statement, where officials stressed the urgency of addressing weak conviction rates and the long-running resource shortages affecting national policing structures.
Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis said the City welcomes Parliament’s decision to investigate violent crime trends, describing the process as an opportunity to place long-standing concerns ‘in the national spotlight.’
‘We can turn the tables on gang, gun, and drug crime, but this is only possible if we increase conviction rates, which remain extremely low,’ he said, adding that the City intends to participate fully in the upcoming inquiry.
He noted that the core challenge lies not in arrests, but in follow-through: ‘SAPS and prosecutors are too under-resourced to gain convictions in the vast majority of cases.’
Hill-Lewis argued that giving municipal officers broader investigative powers would strengthen case dockets and improve the chances of prosecution.
He then highlighted ongoing investments, including what the City describes as a historic deployment of 700 additional officers in the last year.
Information reported by the City indicates that its enforcement capacity has expanded significantly in recent years.
Since 2021, municipal policing personnel reportedly increased by 1 263 members, a 48% rise, while SAPS staffing in the province was estimated to have declined by around 1 300 officers during the same period.
Vehicle availability reflects a similar trend, as based on this year’s fleet figures from the City: there are now 560 more municipal policing vehicles on Cape Town roads compared with SAPS units.
This has resulted in placing additional pressure on municipal officers to fill gaps traditionally handled by national police.
Alderman JP Smith, the mayoral committee member for Safety and Security, pointed to findings from the Madlanga Commission to explain the extent of the crisis.
He cited examples of stations without laptops, detectives relying on personal phones, and shortages of essentials, including statement paper and DNA kits for GBV cases.
‘There is a real crisis facing our police service, driven by national-level mismanagement,’ he said, warning that resource shortages continue to prevent SAPS from securing convictions linked to violent crime.
Smith added that while the City supports SAPS through intelligence-led operations and joint initiatives, its efforts alone cannot resolve systemic challenges within the broader justice chain.
A recent parliamentary response indicates SAPS vacancy rates across Cape Town range between 20% and 40% in several precincts.
As of August 2025, more than 200 detective posts remained unfilled, a figure City officials say has contributed directly to delays and docket backlogs.
Mayor Hill-Lewis reiterated his call for national intervention, including formal expansion of municipal policing powers under draft regulations published earlier this year.
He said reform at this stage would be essential to restoring confidence in the justice system and ensuring communities affected by gang activity see meaningful progress.
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