This morning, 08 July 2022, the Member of the Mayoral Committee for Community Safety, Cllr Moseki officially presided over the pass out ceremony where 470 newly trained Officers were officially welcomed into the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD). The new officers are the first intake to graduate from the new Multiparty government with plans to recruit more officers within this term.
ActionSA appreciates that recruitment alone is not enough and celebrates this milestone as part of a holistic approach to cultivating law enforcement agencies that are well-resourced, effective and free from political interference. This is so that the safety of the residents is at the centre of all law enforcement efforts.
These officers were trained through vigorous programme which comprises of an induction phase of one month, which is intended to familiarise trainees with the EMPD precinct environment and the overall basic activities of the City’s Customer Care Centres (CCC).
During this phase, trainees develop a better understanding of policing duties which eventually prepares them towards their learning abilities for the Academy. This training is a combination of theory and practice. Once completed, members are then deployed as fully-fledged officers to their various areas of deployment across the City.
The move and initiative to recruit new EMPD Officers follows from ActionSA’s manifesto platform which seeks to ensure that the residents of Ekurhuleni are and feel safe by ensuring that there is law enforcement and that the rule of law is adhered to.
In his address, the MMC for Community Safety, Cllr Moseki congratulated the newly trained officers and encouraged them to implement their skills and knowledge at the various areas within the City.
“Officers, you will need to continuously learn and apply what you have been taught, in an endless process of improving your policing skills. In your career as an officer, remember that your focus should always be the residents of this country, the people you have to serve and protect. Use the powers granted to you with an accompanying sense of responsibility, and be ethical in all that you do. Treat all people with respect. Respect and humility will keep you on the right track in trying times, even when criminals try to lure you into criminality for corrupt gains. Live and work in such a way that your colleagues and the community will respect you.”
The addition of 470 new officials to the City’s current Police Department, is seen as a force multiplier and we are as a part of the Multiparty Government in Ekurhuleni are certain that this will enhance police visibility at identified hotspot areas in the City. Added to this, MMC Moseki launched Operation #BuyaMthetho, a multi-disciplinary operation which aims to affirm the City’s commitments to bringing back the rule of law.
“The operation’s main focus will be to ensure City by-laws are adhered to by all within the City and that the rule of law becomes the order of the day,” said Moseki
Moseki also stressed the importance of bringing back the rule of law in the City in order to rid the City of its criminal elements. As part of the multi-party coalition government, Operation #BuyaMthetho aims to affirm the City’s commitments in ensuring that rot in the City is stopped in order to make it a prosperous and inclusive place for all to live, work, and play.
I am hopeful that the new officers will bring about a safer City for all Ekurhuleni residents.
