Day: April 11, 2022

NELSPRUIT – The Provincial Commissioner of the SAPS in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Daphney Manamela has applauded members of the police at Malelane for their vigilance and alertness which enabled them to sniff out a large amount of dagga starched in 14 bags as it was being transported in a minibus on the N4 Road. The driver of the minibus, aged 42 was arrested on Saturday, 09 April 2022 around 10h35 am.

According to the report, SAPS members from Malelane were conducting a sting operation on the N4 Road, about 5 kilometres away from Malelane CBD. A white Toyota Quantum then emerged with one occupant (driver) and it was spotted then stopped by the members. During the search, police discovered the said bags of dagga weighing about 500 kilograms, to the estimated street value of about R750 000-00. The man was then apprehended and charged with dealing in dagga.

He is expected to appear before the Nkomazi Magistrate’s Court (in Tonga) on Monday, 11 April 2022 facing the said charges.

The Provincial Commissioner of the SAPS in Mpumalanga, Lieutenant General Semakaleng Daphney further indicated that the police are ever-ready to remove all types of drugs from the society. “The public should expect more of these kinds of operations as we move towards Easter holidays. We will intensify our efforts whilst we clampdown on crime. We shall leave no stone unturned” said the General.

Source: South African Police Service

Minister in the Presidency, Mondli Gungubele, says a key issue commissioners appointed to the National Planning Commission (NPC) will be expected to address is the slow progress in the implementation of the National Development Plan (NDP) and to identify solutions to make sure that the country fast tracks its route to the NDP goals.

The Minister, who serves as chairperson of the NPC, was speaking during a first media briefing of the third NPC which was appointed in December last year.

“One of the shortcomings that [the NPC] has identified…was the incapacity of the state to implement the proposals of the NDP. This often combined with poor leadership that pay lip-service to the NDP without understanding its goals has acted as an obstacle to implementation of developmental objectives.

“As government, we are clear that the greatest challenge has been around implementation and in the discussions held to date, this was my emphasis to guide the discussions,” Gungubele said.

The National Development Plan – which was adopted ten years ago – was created as an action plan for government to tackle several challenges facing the country including unemployment, poverty, inequality, safety and healthcare.

“The NDP was designed to change the lives of all South Africans by taking a comprehensive approach where the reality of 2012 [would] become a different one by 2030. We must recognise that we have not met the goals as we intended 10 years ago, that is true.

“Recognising this is the first step to asking: how do we do things differently to change the trajectory that we are on. This is where [the commission] will assist us as we tackle this challenge where implementation of our plans has not met the targets,” he said.

NPC Deputy Chairperson, Professor Tinyiko Maluleke, said the third NPC begins its term at a precarious moment in our country’s history and the “tall order” it faces in bringing the country closer to what the NDP envisioned.

“There is, of course, a reason why we are called the NPC…and not the National Implementation Commission. But if implementation is slow or non-existent, planning alone, is clearly insufficient. Given that ours is a tenure that is closest to the finish line of 2030, we cannot afford to be dismissive, smug or philosophical about implementation.

“We have to probe why it is, why it has been so hard to coordinate, to cohere, to cascade down, to streamline and pinpoint down the necessary catalytic interventions which will embed and institutionalise the NDP within the departmental, provincial and municipal plans,” he said.

Professor Maluleke said the NPC will also give attention to identifying catalytic areas for government to pursue.

“Countries which have successfully achieved their national developmental goals and targets are those at the heart of whose plans are clear catalytic priorities around which the whole state machinary is mobilized.

“The third NPC will help to enhance the ability of the state to identify and pursue catalytic priorities which will expedite the attainment of NDP goals,” he said.

According to Maluleke, another focus area for the NPC will be mobilizing the country’s support for the NDP and its goals.

“Although the NDP is a plan for the whole country, it has not been sufficiently adopted by all sectors at all times. As we mark its tenth anniversary in September, the NPC is urging all South Africans to rally behind the NDP to ensure its implementation and to call government to account on the basis of the promise contained in the NDP.

“To that end, the NPC is committed to building partnerships broadly across society and to pursing engagements that should ensure active citizenry and strong leadership for development,” he said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

FREE STATE – Parkweg police are looking for suspects on a murder and robbery incident that happened outside a Pub and Grill in Kellner Street – Wesdene, Bloemfontein. The members at Community Service Centre received a complaint of an attack at the parking area near the Pub at about 03:00. A patrol vehicle was despatched to attend to the scene and on arrival the members found an African male laying on his back.

According to witnesses they were attacked by four (4) unknown African males carrying knives. The victim was stabbed on the back and robbed of a cellular telephone and car keys. The 32-year-old Air Force Corporal from 16 Squadron at Bloemspruit Base was declared dead on the scene by paramedics. A case of Murder with an added charge of Robbery was opened at Parkweg Police Station.

Any member of the public who might have information that can lead to the arrest of the suspects is requested to contact Constable Thabo Motlohi at 082 525 2603. Alternatively the information can be submitted on MySAPS App or call the SAPS Crime Stop number 08600 10111.

Source: South African Police Service

Water and Sanitation Minister, Senzo Mchunu, says there is no chance that any activity associated with the department currently and in future, concerning fraud and corruption and will go unpunished.

“Both [the] ministry and the department have a zero-tolerance policy towards fraud and corruption and will pursue disciplinary action and ensure consequence management in all cases where there is evidence of fraud and corruption, without fear or favour,” Mchunu said.

Mchunu’s remarks follow an article in the Daily Maverick, accusing the ministry and the department of blatantly disregarding reports by the former Minister’s Disciplinary Advisory Committee.

The article, which is based on reports from a whistle-blower, also implied that the Ministry and the department are failing to ensure consequence management in respect of fraud and corruption cases by both senior and junior departmental officials.

Mchunu has disputed the report, noting that it is not only “an outright lie but a complete twist of information.”

“Instead of being frustrated as alleged in the article, the whistle-blower is strongly advised to either hand over the files to him, approach the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) who are already investigating a number of corruption cases within the department, report the crimes that they have information on, or to approach the police to open cases. Failure to report a crime or expose criminality is a crime in itself,” Mchunu said in a statement on Monday.

Responding to the reports in question, Mchunu said the reports were compiled by the Disciplinary Advisory Committee formed during the previous Human Settlements, Water and Sanitation Minister’s tenure. This was to advise the then Minister and acting Director-General on disciplinary actions required, pertaining to all wrongdoings.

“There is no such thing as a Ministerial Advisory Committee producing forensic reports that the journalist writes about. The Disciplinary Advisory Committee did not include officials of the department and comprised of Ministerial appointees, whose primary function was to advise the former Minister.

“These appointments were therefore linked to the term of office of the former Minister, which came to an end on 05 August 2021. A formal statement was issued on 20 September 2021, addressing the alleged disbandment of the various Ministerial committees,” Mchunu highlighted.

According to the Minister, the reporter submitted a set of questions, requesting him and the Director-General, Dr Sean Phillips to respond.

The Director-General responded in writing, whilst the Minister requested a virtual meeting with the reporter and the interview was held last week.

The Minister said the journalist misrepresented what he said by alleging that no formal hand-over ever took place between the former Minister and him.

During the interview, the Mchunu further explained that the alleged forensic reports were never handed over to him.

He added that various matters are at various stages of investigation by the SIU, ranging from the Giyani Pipeline Project to the War-On-Leaks Programme.

The reporter was alerted to another investigation where five disciplinary referrals had been made and 45 administrative action applications had been made for placing the implicated entities and individuals on the National Treasury database of restricted suppliers.

“I want to state publicly that there is no chance that any activity associated with the department currently and in future concerning corruption and fraud will go unpunished or be overlooked.

“We are really hard at work, focused on ensuring that all the citizens of the Republic of South Africa are given access to clean water and sanitation services, and we will not be deterred by such articles,” the Minister said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

WESTERN CAPE – The dedication of Operation Lockdown II members to keep our communities safe yielded positive results with the arrest of a 20 year old male for the possession of an unlicensed firearm, possession of a hijacked vehicle and pointing of a firearm in Island Street, Site C, Khayelitsha on Saturday night.

The members responded to a complaint of a hijacking when they arrested the suspect who tried to evade arrest whilst in possession of a 9mm pistol.

Furthermore, the members arrested a 24 year old male for the possession of an imitation firearm in Delft. The members were busy with stop and search operations when they found the suspect in possession of an imitation firearm under suspicious circumstances.

Meanwhile Operation Lockdown II members deployed in the Nyanga area foiled a hijacking in EMD Road when three males tried to hijack an e-hailing driver after calling him for transport. The suspects robbed the driver of an undisclosed amount of cash and managed to evade arrest, while a 23 year old suspect was arrested inside the vehicle.

Once charged the suspects will appear in court on their respective charges.

In an unrelated incident, on Sunday, 2022-04-10 at approximately 14:45, Ocean view SAPS apprehended a suspect at Carina Way, Ocean View, who was found in possession of a black CZ P-9mm pistol.

The 43 year old suspect was arrested and detained for the possession of an unlicensed firearm and will appear in the Simon’s Town Magistrate’s court tomorrow, Tuesday, 12 April 2022 on the mentioned charges.

Source: South African Police Service

President Cyril Ramaphosa has used his weekly newsletter to condemn anti-foreigner sentiments, acts of vigilantism and assure citizens that government is dealing with illegal migration in the country.

This in the wake of recent protests in Diepsloot against alleged deficiencies in policing following several murders in the area.

The protest turned violent and culminated in the murder of an alleged illegal migrant.

“The events in the Gauteng township of Diepsloot last week were a tragedy. In the course of a single weekend, seven people were killed, sparking protests. This loss of life is deplorable, as is the killing of a fellow African from Zimbabwe allegedly at the hands of vigilantes,” President Ramaphosa said.

The President emphasised that although crime remains a “serious problem in this country,” crime cannot be laid solely at the hands of any specific group.

“Crime…affects all communities and people are justifiably tired of living in fear of criminals. Contrary to what is claimed by some anti-immigration groupings and individuals, the perpetrators of crime are both black and white, male and female, foreigner and citizen.

“Crime, not migrants, is the common enemy we must work together to defeat. We cannot defeat crime through incitement, violence, intimidation and vigilantism aimed at foreign nationals, and specifically nationals from other African countries,” he said.

Dealing with crime and illegal migration

President Ramaphosa said government acknowledges frustrations by communities against the “apparent inability of police to deal with criminals” and is already taking steps to correct this.

“Among the measures we are taking to capacitate the police is the recruitment of an additional 12 000 additional police officers. We are also re-establishing community policing forums (CPFs) across the country. These forums bring communities and police representatives together to improve local safety and hold police accountable. Communities need to work with the police by actively participating in CPFs and reporting suspected acts of criminality,” he said.

The President said that at the same time, government is aware of the security, stability and economic risks posed by illegal migration poses and the “burden” it places on essential services and service delivery.

He warned, however, that private citizens are not empowered “to assume the role of immigration or law enforcement authorities” by demanding identification from foreign nationals.

“Under Section 41 of the Immigration Act, only a police member or immigration officer can ask someone to identify themselves as a citizen, permanent resident or foreign national. If these officers believe, on reasonable grounds, that the person is in the country unlawfully, they may be detained while an investigation into their status is conducted.

“Enforcement of migration legislation is a priority for government. We are working to ensure that syndicates perpetrating immigration fraud in collusion with corrupt officials are brought to book. This year alone, several people implicated in passport fraud have been arrested,” he said.

An appeal to obey the law

The President reflected on some of the scenes that played out in Diepsloot and other parts of the country in the name of ridding the country of illegal migrants.

“We have seen people being stopped on the street by private citizens and being forced to produce identification to verify their immigration status. We have seen some political leaders making unscientific statements about immigrants to exploit people’s grievances for political gain.

“We have seen marches being led on people’s homes and their dwellings raided for evidence of criminal activity. We have seen people being attacked, hurt and even killed because of how they looked or because they have a particular accent,” President Ramaphosa said.

He said these actions echo the actions taken during the height of Apartheid.

“This was how the apartheid oppressors operated. They said some people could only live in certain areas, operate certain businesses or take certain jobs. Under apartheid, black people were deemed suspects by default and stopped by police when found in so-called white areas. Black people were forced to produce a dompas and if they could not do so, they were jailed.

“We cannot allow such injustices to happen again,” the President said.

President Ramaphosa called on citizens not to repeat the xenophobic attacks which have rocked the country over the past decade.

“Attacking those we suspect of wrongdoing merely because they are a foreign national is not an act of patriotism. It is immoral, racist and criminal. In the end, it will lead to xenophobia, whose consequences we have lived through in previous years. We do not want to go back there because in the main the people of South Africa are not xenophobic.

“I want to appeal to all South Africans, but particularly to younger South Africans who thankfully never experienced the true brutality and dehumanisation of apartheid. Let us not become like the ones who oppressed us, no matter how legitimate the grievance,” President Ramaphosa said.

Source: South African Government News Agency

NORTHERN CAPE – The police were out in full force and arrested 8 male suspects for various criminal activities in Prieska.

The police followed up on information and confiscated goods that were allegedly stolen during house breakings and also arrested others for possession of suspected stolen goods.

The police confiscated an alleged stolen laptop, DVD player, amplifier and power tools that was stolen.

Further information led to the arrest of a 37-year-old male for with Tik worth R300-00.

The suspects are aged between 20 and 63-year-old and will be appearing in court soon.

The Pixley Ka Seme Cluster Commander, Brig Nomana Adonis commended the Prieska Station Commander, Lt Col Rendani Ndou and his members for the continued unabated efforts in addressing crime in the area.

Police are issuing a stern warning, which dealing in stolen goods is a crime. As a community, we need to be responsible. Do not deal in stolen goods.

Source: South African Police Service