Reiger Park Tragedy Demands Urgent Collaboration Between SAPS and Community Policing Forums
Press Statement by Xolani Khumalo
ActionSA Ekurhuleni Mayoral Candidate
ActionSA calls on the South African Police Service (SAPS) to urgently address the surge in unlicensed firearms, with criminals terrorising communities across South Africa, including yesterday’s mass shooting in Reiger Park, Ekurhuleni.
Last night’s Reiger Park mass shooting is not an isolated incident. Communities are rightly asking why SAPS cannot answer the critical question of who is supplying the weapons that continue to terrorise communities and why the flow of these firearms appears to be increasing. It is clear that communities are facing an existential crisis, with the proliferation of unlicensed firearms at the centre of near-daily mass shootings from the Cape Flats to Ekurhuleni.
ActionSA maintains that as gang violence escalates and law enforcement struggles to stop the bloodshed, one of the most important steps SAPS must take is to intensify collaboration with community crime-fighting forums, which would help compensate for the lack of effective intelligence. The fight against criminality is most effectively waged when police and communities work hand in hand.
As part of my 10-point plan for Ekurhuleni, Safety and Law Enforcement takes centre stage so that we can rid the city of the lawlessness that has festered for far too long. This requires, in part:
Establishing specialised EMPD units to tackle syndicates and gangs in crime hotspots
Deploying gunshot detection and crime-mapping technology for rapid response
Reskilling and capacitating Community Policing Forums to empower residents to contribute to lasting solutions
ActionSA believes that community-oriented policing, which strengthens cooperation and collaboration between law enforcement and the communities they serve, is key to building a safer Ekurhuleni and South Africa where criminals live in fear of the law and law-abiding citizens live in safety.
Reiger Park Tragedy Demands Urgent Collaboration Between SAPS and Community Policing Forums
ActionSA calls on the South African Police Service (SAPS) to urgently address the surge in unlicensed firearms, with criminals terrorising communities across South Africa, including yesterday’s mass shooting in Reiger Park, Ekurhuleni.
Last night’s Reiger Park mass shooting is not an isolated incident. Communities are rightly asking why SAPS cannot answer the critical question of who is supplying the weapons that continue to terrorise communities and why the flow of these firearms appears to be increasing. It is clear that communities are facing an existential crisis, with the proliferation of unlicensed firearms at the centre of near-daily mass shootings from the Cape Flats to Ekurhuleni.
ActionSA maintains that as gang violence escalates and law enforcement struggles to stop the bloodshed, one of the most important steps SAPS must take is to intensify collaboration with community crime-fighting forums, which would help compensate for the lack of effective intelligence. The fight against criminality is most effectively waged when police and communities work hand in hand.
As part of my 10-point plan for Ekurhuleni, Safety and Law Enforcement takes centre stage so that we can rid the city of the lawlessness that has festered for far too long. This requires, in part:
ActionSA believes that community-oriented policing, which strengthens cooperation and collaboration between law enforcement and the communities they serve, is key to building a safer Ekurhuleni and South Africa where criminals live in fear of the law and law-abiding citizens live in safety.