Speaker Notes for The National Commissioner Of SAPS, General Fannie Masemola at The Stakeholder Engagement ahead of the official signing of the Cooperation Agreement with the City of Cape Town

Thank you Programme Director

The Minister of Police, Mr Senzo Mchunu

The Deputy Ministers of Police, Mr Cassel Mathale and Ms Polly Boshielo

The MEC for Police Oversight and Community Safety, Ms Anroux Marais

The Deputy Mayor of the City of Cape Town, Mr Eddie Andrew’s

The CPF Board Chairperson, Ms Franscina Lucas

Representatives from Business Against Crime

NGOs and Faith Based Organisations

Representatives from the Institute of Security Studies

All District Commissioners and senior officers present here today

I am glad today we have gathered here at the City Hall of Cape Town to collectively devise a working plan and strategy that will map a way forward in assisting us to jointly prevent, combat and reduce the levels of crime in the City of Cape Town.

Minister I am delighted that we are back here at the Ci
ty of Cape Town to not only engage the City and stakeholders but to also put into motion, a plan that will ensure lasting and tangible solutions to serious and violent crime including gang violence that is plaguing the City.

The gang wars, the crime of extortion on a micro and macro level is threatening the economy of the City of Cape Town and has to be nipped in the bud.

It is concerning that in the last crime statistics that were released for the period between October and December 2023, the City of Cape Town recorded a rise in murder and attempted murder cases. It is for this reason, that this city remains our top priority in the fight against crime as evidenced in our resources allocation to ensure that we heighten Police visibility in order to intensify crime prevention operations and our interventions in various hotspots. Each time we receive new Police recruits, the Western Cape also receives one of the biggest allocation from our newly trained Police Officers because we understand the urgent need to
combat crime and deal decisively with criminality in this part of the country.

We are also continuously resourcing and working at improving and embracing technological developments in an effort to be a step ahead of the criminal elements in this province.

Operation Shanela is proving to be effective in the fight against crime not only in this province but in all provinces as well. Nonetheless, we still need to do more and we are appealing to various stakeholders gathered here today to join hands with us as we move with speed to make our communities safe. We have a number of national interventions in the province in the form of lockdown three and its aim is to enhance capability and reinforce our strategies in preventing serious and violent crimes.

So, we do believe that the collaboration that we are stepping into will yield the much needed desired results in so far as the reduction of serious and violent crime is concerned.

We call on all people gathered here today, to put their shoulders to the wheel so
that we are able to defeat the scourge of crime.

We do believe that jointly, we can go far, we shall and we will overcome these crime related challenges.

Let us engage meaningfully and tackle the important agenda before us by suggesting solutions on how we can better fight crime together,

I thank you!

Source: South African Police Service