Provincial Safety Departments and Metro Police operations, & readiness for 2010 World Cup

Meeting report

Policing Coordination, metro police activities, and readiness for the 2010 FIFA Soccer World Cup
Gauteng Department of Community Safety briefing
Mr Mongezi Tshongweni, Head of Department, Gauteng Department of Community Safety, gave a profile on the province. Gauteng was South Africa’s most densely populated province, with 9.6 million people (although it covered only 1.4% of the total land surface of the Republic). Gauteng represented 20.2% of South Africa's total population, according to the mid-2007 estimates by Stats SA. As at April 2010, there were 31 816 sworn police officers and 6 633 civilian employees of the South African Police Services (SAPS), and a police-population ratio of 1 police officer to 315 citizens.  Tshwane Metro Police (TMPD), Ekurhuleni Metro Police (EMPD) and Johannesburg Metro Police (JMPD) were all operating within Gauteng. There were 2 134 employees at EMPD, 4 365 employees at JMPD, 2 120 employees at TMPD, and 843 employees of the Gauteng Traffic Police. In total there were 41 278 safety employees in the province.

Section 206 (3) of the Constitution entitled the province to monitor police conduct, oversee the effectiveness and efficiency of the Local Economic Areas (LEAs) and liaise with the Minister of Police with respect to crime and policing in the province.

The MEC responsible for policing approved applications for the establishment of a municipal or metropolitan police service, in terms of section 64A (3) of the SAPS Amendment Act, Act 83 of 1998. The MEC was entitled to information and documents under the control of the Metro Police Department (MPD) in order to assess compliance and the maintenance of national standards. The MEC was empowered to appoint an administrator for the MPD, if it failed to comply with conditions or maintain national standards.

The Gauteng Provincial Government and SAPS had developed the Gauteng Aggravated Robbery Strategy (ARS) in June 2008. The ARS guided a range of different role-players towards the common objective of reducing violent robberies and their support networks. The strategy also recognised the need for greater levels of support and cooperation between SAPS, MPDs, Gauteng Traffic Police and traffic police departments at local municipalities.

The Province had also established a Provincial Crime Combating Forum for the coordination and promotion of cooperation between all law enforcement agencies. This, together with a Joint Steering Committee on ARS tracked implementation and identified clusters that needed support and advice. All role players were to cooperate in tracing suspects, searching markets for stolen goods, roadblocks and stop and search operations, joint visibility operations in crime hotspots, rapid response to emergency calls and public transport-related threats, and operations targeting illegal alcohol outlets.

The Provincial Government had established the Gauteng Intergovernmental Safety Coordinating Committee (GISCC), which was chaired by the MEC and comprised of the MMCs for public safety, to ensure an integrated and coordinated approach to policing at provincial and local levels. This focused on the role of local government in crime prevention generally, and the role of ward councillors in the fight against crime and ensuring rural safety. The Gauteng Information on Police Performance System (GIPPS) held sessions to monitor police station performance in relation to serious and organised crimes as well as crimes against women and children. The MEC’s monitoring team also interacted with the 22 clusters weekly to deal with cluster-specific operational performance matters.

Tshwane Metropolitan Police Department: Briefing
Ms Pinkie Mathabathe, Acting Strategic Executive Director, Tshwane Metropolitan Police Department, said the key law enforcement areas of the Community Safety Department were crime prevention (which included illegal gambling, urinating in public, drunkenness or drinking in public, house breaking, theft of/out of motor vehicles, rape, assault, drugs, illegal immigrants, liquor related offences, road policing, free flow of traffic, danger and obstruction, drunken driving, and moving violations) and By-Law Policing (which involved illegal trading, formal and informal businesses, fireworks, illegal electricity connections, illegal advertising, and taverns and shebeens).

The Tshwane Metro Police was divided into three areas: Pro-Active Policing Services Division, Strategic Policing Interventions Division, and Community Safety Operational Administration Division. The Metro had a total of 2 120 operational personnel, 11 canines, and 20 equestrian. There was a total of 492 vehicles and 2 285 total firearms which were registered under the Official Institution 614, Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality in terms of the Firearms Control Act 60/2000.

The Tshwane Metropolitan Police Services requested operation budget for 2010/11 showed that the total revenue was R191 658 278. The approved budget for expenditure was R20 324 000.

She set out the areas in which TMPD trained new recruits, and indicated the areas of in-service training, which included  crowd management control, crime prevention training, specialised training, amended legislation training, by-law training, advanced driver training, Special Units training, community awareness training, career development training, compliance training, and VIP Protection.

TMPD saw its relationship with SAPS as a partnership with the aim of fostering integrated and joint responsibilities. Areas of interaction were in joint operations and stake holders meetings. It would play a supporting role to SAPS in respect of the 2010 World Cup, with its focus being on traffic management, by-laws and road safety. The Community Safety Department was represented in all Operational Command Structures. For each match, there would be deployment of 400 TMPD Officers, 106 fire-fighters, and 22 disaster management officers.

Presentation by eThekwini Metro Police
Mr Eugene Nzama, Chief of Durban Metro, said there were four key law enforcement focus areas. The first was traffic policing, including reduction of accidents, general traffic enforcement and ensuring free flow of traffic. The second area was proactive visible policing, which included implementing a high visibility crime prevention patrol system for high profile areas, and designing and implementing high density policing sections for areas with high levels of crime, in support of SAPS. The third area was re-active policing, which established police reactive units for regional commands, in support of SAPS, for response to complaints and reaction to crime. The fourth key area was by-laws and general policing which included street trading, vagrants and shebeens/illegal liquor outlets.

The organogram of eThekwini Metro Police was presented. There were five regional directors, 15 divisional commanders, 30 area commanders, 120 shift commanders, 2800 constables, and 800 part-time reserve traffic wardens. eThekwini had 19 reporting stations, 583 vehicles, 1932 weapons, bullet proof vests adequate for the number of members, portable radios adequate for the number of members, and ancillary equipment adequate for the number of members (torches, hand-cuffs, batons and other items).

The budget for the 2010/11 financial year was R419 788 900 for salaries and allowances, R108 389 000 for general expenses, and R6 493 900 for repairs and maintenance.

Operational planning of eThekwini Metro was done through integrated processes with SAPS and he said that eThekwini possibly had the best working relationship with SAPS in the country. All metro police training was coordinated through a national training sub committee, which also involved SAPS and other forum role players. The Metro Police Training Academy’s training figures were outlined for 2009, and it was reported that there were 286 currently in training for 2010.

Mr Nzama set out the tactical deployment plans were in place for the 2010 FIFA World Cup: There would be road closures around Moses Mabhida Stadium and precinct on match days. There was a integrated crime prevention plan for Moses Mabhida Stadium and precinct, under SAPS command. There was a beachfront and fan park deployment plan, and an Umlazi and Kwamashu public viewing area. There were team practice sights in Clermont and Kwamashu. There was a joint operating centre deployment plan agreed upon with SAPS, provincial government and the host city. There was a remote search park as well as escorts and route protection. There was a rights protection deployment plan. Private security would be present at fan parks and park and ride areas. There was a traffic management deployment plan for Durban central and traffic management plan for the beachfront, including road closures. There were plans for tourists routes, traffic management, and by-law enforcement. In order to provide support for all policing, various committees had been set up and were functional. These were Committees in Logistics (covering workshop, equipment, uniform, and impoundment), Training (covering basic, advanced, firearm, protocol training), Armoury (covering the issuing of, supplementary, and maintenance equipment), and Administration (to cater for correspondence, support and finance).

Cape Town Metropolitan Police Department
Mr Robert Young, Chief of Cape Town Metro, said there were three key enforcement focus areas. The first was safety at events, including FIFA Soccer World Cup and soft border operations with other Municipalities. There were geographical focused, integrated and coordinated operations to drive targets of the Annual Police Plan, and to support SAPS, in areas such as drugs and substance abuse, information and intelligence, particularly in hot spot areas, organised and commercial crimes, as well as sporadic interventions for gang violence and similar incidents. A proactive and visible policing policy was in operation. There would be roadblocks and vehicle check points, and specialised units established to combat incidences of illicit narcotics dealing and drug abuse, particularly in respect of “tik”. There were currently 296 CCTV cameras in Cape Town, but in preparation for the FIFA Soccer World Cup there would be an additional 35 CCTV cameras rolled out. A Freeway Management System (FMS) for the N1, N2 and R300 would add a further 111 CCTV cameras to the Metro Police’s existing surveillance network.  Surveillance on the current CCTV network was done by a contracted security company, for 24 hours and seven days a week, overseen by Metro Police staff.

Cape Town had an Integrated Spatially Enabled Response Management System (ISERMS), which would enable the MPD to better utilise its combined resources and co-ordinate activities, thus contributing to efficient service delivery. There was real time information on resource availability and deployment by this R22 million investment. 

Operational highlights included visible policing which, at 26 623 hours on patrol, exceeded the targeted figure of 17 200 hours. There were 646 joint operations undertaken with SAPS and other stakeholders. There was a target of 1692 drunken driving arrests, with 1368 to date, and 629 drug related arrests made since July 2009. Metropolitan Police were patrolling 145 schools vulnerable to gangsterism, drug abuse and violence. Implementation of a Neighbourhood Safety Project, in collaboration with UCT and Amsterdam Police, resulted in car guards at Muizenberg and Gordon’s Bay beachfront being trained and organised to contribute to safety on the beaches, and the problems of learners in Nyanga / Crossroads being robbed was counteracted. Local participation in safety and security was ensured by reviving Neighbourhood Watch in the area.

CMPD had consistently exceeded expenditure targets of 95% spent on both Capital and Operating budget, supporting the City’s endeavours for financial efficiency, and had an operating budget of R296 092 672, and a capital budget of R9 438 269.

CTMPD’s relationship with SAPS comprised of a collaboration at the National Forum for Municipal / Metropolitan Police Chiefs, Provincial JOINTS, and priority committees set up for specific events or incidents such as strikes. Crime Combating Forums ensured that joint planning occurred at area level. CTMPD was mutually supportive of SAPS’s strategic plans in the Province, by rendering traffic services. There was a excellent relationships at all levels, especially with the imminent FIFA Soccer World Cup.

The training interventions were described and it was noted that traffic officials and fire and emergency service personnel were also trained.

Cape Town’s readiness for the World Cup was illustrated by the successful 2009 draw, in which CTMP played a significant role. Cape Town was hosting 8 games, including one quarter Final and one Semi final. The Host City agreement obligated the City to promulgate by-laws. CTMPD would support SAPS, with a staff compliment of 510 plus contingency of 140, of whom 235 would be available daily. CTMPD would do foot, high visibility, vehicle, dog and equestrian patrols at the stadium and PVAs.

Swartland Municipal Police Service
Mr M Green, Chief of Police, Swartland, said that Swartland was located 65 km from Cape Town, with its head quarters in Malmesbury. There were two divisions with one precinct. Eleven towns fell within the jurisdiction of the Swartland Municipality. It was established in 2002 and was the only B–Municipality in South Africa that had a Municipal Police Service, Traffic Police, Law Enforcement and Crime Prevention function which was incorporated into one Service. Its area of jurisdiction was approximately 3 700 square kilometers and the population covered approximately 84 000.

Swartland's law enforcement focus areas were crime prevention (including drug trafficking, narcotics, Illegal shebeens, land invasions, and xenophobia) and traffic enforcement. The Swartland Municipal Police Service (SMPS) was dedicated to providing an efficient and integrated public friendly service to all the communities within the Swartland by promotion of road safety, community policing, crime prevention and by-Law enforcement, through effective management, control, law enforcement and education. The core values were set out, including result-driven service. It had 47 operational staff, and the breakdown was given, and 20 patrol vehicles.

The budget for 2009/10 comprised of an expenditure total of R10 837 412 and income total of R3 307 820. The difference of R7 529 529 was recovered by property rates and general services. The total expenditure budget for 2009 / 2010 of Swartland Municipality was R 267 480 989.

The training interventions were outlined. In service training programmes were provided primarily by SAPS, and the Gene Louw Traffic College. There was weekly interaction with SAPS, and SMPS attended crime combating, Sector Policing, Community Police Forums and Civilian Oversight Committee meetings. There were also planned integrated operations, mainly in areas involving drugs and alcohol.

Swartland was not directly affected by the FIFA Soccer World Cup. They had no fan parks or PVAs. However this area was expecting an influx of tourists and an increase traffic volumes, and there was a plan for the West Coast region.

Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) briefing
Mr Chris Ngcobo, Chief, Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department, said the key law enforcement focus areas of this department (JMPD) were crime prevention, road traffic policing, and by-law regulation enforcement. He explained the goals of each of the enforcement policies, noting that compliance was the key outcome for each (see attached presentation for details).

JMPD had 3 202 Metropolitan Police Officers, 262 Law Enforcement Officers and 900 Civilian Staff. It had 669 marked patrol vehicles, 15 unmarked vehicles, 38 special vehicles, 30 bicycles and 21 motorcycles. There were also 18 horses and 42 canines.

JMPD's operational budget was R1.237 billion and the capital budget was R3.4 million.

JMPD continued to ensure sustainable partnership with SAPS, other law enforcement agencies and key role players. It attended regular meetings at Strategic and Cluster level to develop an atmosphere of mutual cooperation and understanding, and ensured joint operations on a regular basis. SAPS and JMPD shared resources and manpower, crime and other related information. JMPD had made it mandatory that Sector and Regional Commanders maintain an ongoing working relationship with their counterparts on all levels and align their operational plans.

JMPD had an accredited police academy. The courses offered were outlined (see attached presentation for details).

Mr Ngcobo noted that SAPS was the leading agency to deal with national security and matters of law enforcement and crime prevention and protection of identified very VIPs for the FIFA 2010 World Cup. JMPD would play a supportive role to the SAPS. The focus would be on traffic management and road safety.
Its operational and deployment plans were aligned to requirements of the SAPS.

The City of Johannesburg and JMPD, in cooperation with SAPS, PROVJOINT level and all City’s internal and external departments, had developed a safety and security operational plan for all the City's 2010 World Cup venues, and a series of workshops was held in 2009 to align all stakeholders’ operations, and to ensure that security provisions were included in all operational plans. In addition, JMPD had finalised a draft JMPD Deployment Plan for the 2010 World Cup, which was circulated to all City’s internal and external relevant departments involved in the World Cup planning process, for feedback and information. JMPD and SAPS had further embarked on a crime mapping and analysis exercise of the Ellis Park/Soccer City Stadiums within a 2km radius. This process would guide and assist in the prevention or reduction of “crime and grime” before and during the event at the greater stadium precincts.

Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department briefing
Mr Hlula Msimang, Chief, Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department, said his Department (EMPD) had four key enforcement areas, of traffic law enforcement Municipal by-law enforcement, crime prevention, which included  support to SAPS for organised crimes, break ins and robberies, vehicle theft, drugs, and effective response to crime emergencies, and security services for the Municipality.

EMPD had 2 134 staff members, of which 300 were civilians. There were 20 precinct stations, nine specialised units and a fleet of 600. There was also a: Freeway Unit, K9 (Dog Unit), a SWAT Unit, OR Tambo International Airport (ORTIA) unit, a Community Liaison Unit (CLU), a VIP Protection Unit, an Equestrian Unit, Public Order Policing Unit (POPS), Speed Section, and Social Crime Prevention Unit.

The budget allocation for the financial year 2009/10 was R306 193 276 for personnel costs, R44 123 449 for operational and R47 160 950 for capital costs.

Ekurhuleni's relationship with SAPS was made up of a local relationship with precincts and Community Police Forums (CPFs), a Provincial relationship with the MEC of Community Safety and Provincial Joint Officer Commands, and a National relationship with the National Chief's Forum.

Training within Crime Prevention was described. He noted that participants obtained a certificate in crime prevention from WITS University. There was also general training in firearms and statement writing. Training within Traffic Law Enforcement comprised of advanced driving and accident investigation. Participants obtained a Metro Police Officer Diploma. General training was done on by-law enforcement, speed law enforcement and dangerous goods and overloads enforcement.

Ekurhuleni was not a host city for the World Cup, but it did have a role to play as a security agency and also because it was impacted upon by OR Tambo International Airport, and public viewing areas. Some teams were based or had practice venues in Ekurhuleni. There was also an impact by the major freeways.  Ekurhuleni was involved in escorting the Brazilian and Italian teams and was responsible for route protection on the R21, R24, N3, N12 etc.

Discussion
Mr G Schneemann (ANC), said that it was evident from the presentations that there was significant resources allocated in terms of firearms, vehicles and personnel. He asked the SAPS whether there was a nationally agreed strategy and programme of action. In terms of asset control, he wanted to know what was the status of firearms and how many had been lost in each Metro. He commented that there was not much visibility of traffic vehicles on the road at night, and questioned what role was being played. He noted that Tshwane, Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni were next to each other, and so he asked how each MPD worked with the others, and whether there were mechanisms in place for joint operations.

Rev K Meshoe (ACDP) asked all Metro Police Departments what they were actively doing to help with crime prevention. He pointed out that JMPD had mentioned that it needed more training, and asked if others felt the same way.

Rev Meshoe noted that there had been 629 drug arrests, and he wanted to know how many of those arrested had been convicted already. He also wanted to know whether, when police cars were parked under bridges or trees, the police were on duty.

Rev Meshoe enquired why roadblocks were being carried out during rush hour traffic; it was very frustrating to be stopped by the police for those rushing to get to work.

Mr G Lekgetho (ANC) wanted to know from Ms Mathabathe when she was appointed acting Strategic Executive Director and how long would she be acting in this position.

Mr Lekgetho pointed out that drug use by the youth in Mamelodi was a huge problem. The Portfolio Committee on Basic Education had paid a site visit, and during this he had been told by local residents that they were unable to approach the police on this, because they were allegedly working with drug dealers. The Committee had told the people that they would set up a Community Policing Forum in the area. He enquired how the problem of drugs was combated.

Mr Lekgetho told the eThekwini Metro Police that he was made aware of a 24 hour illegal shebeen at University of Zululand, and enquired if this would be closed.

Mr Lekgetho asked all Police Departments if they had vacant posts at their offices and if so when were they going to be filled.

Mr Lekgetho was very impressed with the Swartland Municipal Police's community policing forums, and enquired from the other Metros how they combated drug abuse without the help of the community.

Ms D Kohler-Barnard (DA) said that the Minister of Police said that he was looking at absorbing Metro police into the SAPS. She felt that this was impossible because they had different mandates. She wanted the head of each Metro to respond as to how the MPDs would feel about being subsumed under SAPS and fall under another entity than the taxpayers whom they served directly.

She asked e-Thekwini if the setting up of the fan park for the 2010 World Cup on Durban's beach front was seen as a problem by FIFA, because there was going to be drinking there and there could well be drowning or water accident incidents. She enquired if the police had received instructions to fence off the water.

Ms Kohler Barnard asked JMDP what it was doing about corruption within Metro Police, since one corrupt officer could bring down the name of all the officers in the Metro.

Ms D Schafer (DA), said that the Committee had received complaints, especially in Cape Town, about Metro Police were not attending or participating in Crime Prevention Strategy (CPS) structures, and she asked each Metro to explain what its relationship with CPS was and why the complaints were made.

Ms Schafer referred to Mr Schneemann's statement about a national strategy, but said that there was not a national strategy, because Metros only looked after their designated areas.  None of the Metro Police had mentioned human trafficking in their reports and she enquired what was being done on this issue. She also wanted to know how long it took to get a driver’s license in each Metro, as this was a huge issue and there were long delays.

Ms Schafer asked Cape Town Metro if it was happy with its budget. Unlike other metros, it had not mentioned any problems with the allocation.

Ms Schafer asked whether Metro and SAPS police had to have the same qualification, and, if not, how it differed.

Ms A Van Wyk (ANC) said that according to the Police Act, training was supposed to take place within the guidelines set by SAPS. One of the MPDs had indicated to the Committee that training took six months, and she enquired if this was the same in the other metros.

Ms van Wyk said there had been complaints about the approach to policing by Metro police. Abuse of vagrants and street people was an issue. She wanted to know what was going to be done about sensitising the police to human rights. Ms van Wyk was interested, in particular, to hear what Cape Town MPD had to say about human trafficking because this department was well- known for treating sex workers as perpetrators and not looking at them as possible victims.

Ms van Wyk noted that there had been instability amongst police, and strikes, and asked what had been done to stabilise union relationships.

The Chairperson asked from where the liquor mandate derived.

The Chairperson asked for a description of the differences or overlaps between Metro Police, SAPS and Traffic Officers.

The Chairperson noted that eThekwini set out how many people it trained, how many it employed and how many failed the training. She asked what happened to those who failed, and what made the Municipality take in a certain number after training. She asked what official role SAPS was taking in training metro police.

The Chairperson wanted to know how Metro Police were dealing with corruption and bribes offered and taken by police. She also wanted to know how many cases each Metro had dealt with.

The Chairperson asked each metro to comment on all questions asked, even if they were not directed specifically to that metro.

Chief Young, CTMPD, spoke to the drug related issues. Cape Town targeted council owned plots, and if illegal activity was found there, the renters of such property would be evicted. Secondly, Cape Town targeted drug traffickers. He noted that the convictions did not match the arrests; there was a backlog in the courts, and the courts did not always see substance abuse as related to drugs. The Metro Police was trying to break the cycle by confiscating the drugs. He could not provide exact figures for convictions.

He noted that there had been 64 CPSs in Cape Town, excluding sub forums, so it was difficult to get to all, particularly since the dates often clashed. CTMPD had filled 14 superintendent posts in Cape Town so there was improvement in attendance in CPS meetings. He commented on human trafficking initiatives, saying that Cape Town MPD had been working alongside SAPS and other non government organisations (NGOs) on guidelines for human trafficking. The approach was not only focused on sex workers, but it also targeted brothels, and there were successes.

He reported that two officers had been dismissed from the Metro, and they were still trying to get reinstated. Cape Town Metro had taken an idea from Johannesburg and had printed its citizens’ hotline number on its vehicles. It had adopted a zero tolerance approach. the Metro's legal mandate made it responsible for three areas: trafficking, policing and crime prevention.

Chief Green, Swartland MPD, replied that the social crime prevention unit in the Swartland had helped in tackling issues such as drugs, alcohol and domestic violence. This was done through the help of the CPS and the community. It was going to schools, presenting the campaign and promoting awareness. The social crime prevention unit had also helped with finding displaced people in the community and returning them to their families. If officers did not conduct themselves properly around their firearms, then their permits were taken away. If an officer was involved in a case of domestic violence his permit was also taken away. The Swartland Municipal Police was striving to fill all vacant positions; it currently had four vacant positions which it was in the process of filling. Swartland was not a Metro, so it was dependent on the community for information on police involved in corruption. It was difficult to pick up if an officer was involved in illegal activities in his private capacity, so the police needed to the community to come forward.

The Chairperson said she wanted specifics on the issue of internal corruption. She wanted to know if the MPDs were aware of corruption and what they were doing to combat it.

Chief Green replied that Swartland had not received any complaints about corrupt police officers.

Chief Green said that the waiting period for driver’s license issue was almost four months. The metro had experienced a huge influx of people from outside the Swartland area. Driver’s license appointments were a general problem in South Africa; Swartland could only have a limited number of tests a day because of the limit on resources.

Ms Mathabathe, Tshwane MPD, told Members that she had been standing in as Acting Strategic Executive Director since 1 April 2010, and would be in this position until 30 June 2010. She reported that Tshwane Metro had internal firearms procedures. Any officer who was involved in the loss of a firearm, or in a domestic violence case in a personal capacity, would have his or her permit cancelled.

Ms Van Wyk asked how firearms were distributed and whether there was one firearm per officer.

The Chairperson asked how many cases of lost firearms there were in each Metro.

Ms Mathabathe replied that she could not say how many cases of lost firearms there were, and that each officer in the Tshwane Metro had his/her own firearm.

Chief Green replied that Swartland Municipal police officers shared firearms per shift. He was not aware of any cases of lost firearms.

Ms Yolanda Faro, Deputy Chief, Cape Town Metro Police, replied that the CTMPD had one firearm per officer, which was handed back in at the end of each shift. There were nine cases of lost firearms.

Ms Mathabathe reported that only senior officers were issued with 9mm handguns. In terms of crime prevention the Metro was doing patrols. In terms of social crime prevention, there were programmes on drugs and domestic violence which were presented at schools and churches. The Tshwane police were concentrating on social crime prevention. The metro was also working with SAPS on raiding shebeens and searching people at road blocks for illegal firearms. There were 48 officers for crime prevention. In terms of drugs, Tshwane Metro had identified 40 schools, six of which were in Mamelodi, and was doing random drug testing at the schools. She noted that if there was a perception that police were involved with distributing drugs, then this should be reported to the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD) or management at the station, so that the Metro could deal with those officers. She reported that there were 1 800 positions open, split between Metro Police, Traffic Officers and the Fire Brigade.  Positions were filled based on the budget and availability of money.

The Chairperson asked if she was talking about vacant funded posts, or those that were vacant and non-funded.

Ms Mathabathe replied that less than 1 000 posts were funded. Most of the positions she was talking about were unfunded because of cash flow management in the city of Tshwane. There were a certain number of positions, but about a quarter were funded. When the City informed the heads of departments how much funding was available, the heads could identify critical positions that had to be filled.

The Chairperson wanted to know if Ms Mathabathe was responsible for staff.

Ms Mathabathe replied that HR Corporate management was responsible for and dealt with issues of staffing. The HR Unit told her what the budget allowed and she decided which positions needed to be filled first.

Ms Mathabathe said that the Tshwane Metro did attend 90% of the CPS meetings, but there was sometimes a clash of dates, as there were 50 CPS in Tshwane. In terms of corruption within the Metro, there were currently three cases that she was aware of, which were being investigated internally.

Chief Msimang, Ekurhuleni MPD, told the Committee that Ekurhuleni Metro had a standards and integrity unit who investigated bribery and corruption within the Metro, and the Metro would rely on its recommendation whether to charge the officers. There were currently 149 cases involving bribery, insubordination, misuse of vehicles and negligent driving. Seven of the cases were serious ones, and suspensions were being processed. He pointed out that bribery cases were difficult to prove unless someone from the public came forward with information. The Metro had also finalised a code of ethics, which would be implemented after approval from the council. In terms of firearms Ekurhuleni had the same governance regime as other Metros. There was one firearm per officer, and a competency test was done twice a year. Firearms were also audited internally, once a year. There was only one firearm reported lost. He then reported on training, saying that officers attended a six-month crime prevention course at WITS University or Tshwane University of Technology. In relation to staff issues and strikes, Chief Msimang said that he saw police as an essential service and the Metro was securing a court order to prevent officers from going on strike. In terms of crime prevention Ekurhuleni took the same stance as Cape Town Metro, having a zero tolerance approach. The three mandated areas of focus overlapped with SAPS, and he said that many times the MPD had arrested wanted suspects during traffic law enforcement, and when doing by-law enforcement MPD had closed down buildings that were being used for illegal activity.

The Chairperson wanted to know what Chief Msimang meant when he said in his presentation that officers attended courses from SAPS “as and when they are available”.

Chief Msimang replied that only a limited number of officers could attend a course at one time, and the Metro had taken advantage of courses offered. The only courses not attended were those on running investigations and collecting evidence because Metro did not undertake these tasks.

Chief Msimang continued that there were 122 vacancies at the Ekurhuleni Metro but at this stage there was no budget to fill those positions. He continued to interact with the financial officer to establish when the MPD could recruit for the vacancies.

Chief Msimang said that he could not answer for why police vehicles were parked under bridges or trees for long periods, but said if the public saw a police officer not doing his or her job, they could phone the Metro to check up on the vehicle.

Rev Meshoe said that members of the public needed to be given a number they could call if they saw something wrong.

Ms Kohler-Barnard asked whether the Metro also had tracking systems on their vehicles, like the SAPS.

Chief Nzama replied that all vehicles at eThekwini Metro had a tracking device. In Durban there was a number which the public could call. He commented on the question about the illegal liquor outlet at the University of Zululand, saying that Zululand was far from his own area but that he would call the commissioner in that area and make him aware of the situation. In his own area there were still attempts to reach all illegal liquor outlets.  In terms of staff, he reported that eThekwini had more staff than needed, but that it was decided to keep the four extra trained staff to replace those who were due to retire in a matter of months.  

The Chairperson said that this was administratively wrong, and that eThekwini could not have more people than the organogram provided.

Chief Nzama then addressed the question of the World Cup fan park on the beach front. He said that the City had decided to have it there, but the police would ensure that the concerns were addressed, and there would be life savers patrolling, although swimming would not be allowed. In terms of the driver’s licenses his area also had a back log of two to three months. The Metro was working with the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD) and had an obligation to report to the ICD. There was a forum where SAPS, Metro and ICD met every three months for a meeting to discuss issues. The eThekwini Metro's file on firearms was handed over to the ICD for investigation. At present there was only one case, where five officers had been arrested.
In terms of human trafficking, the Metro was training with other departments on sensitising their staff to the issue. Metro was deployed full time with SAPS in areas where trafficking was a problem.

Chief Nzama said the reason for doing road blocks early in the morning was because this was when non-roadworthy vehicles that caused accidents were on the roads, and could then be taken off.

Ms Van Wyk asked Mr Nzama for his Metro's policy on firearms and how many had been lost.

Mr Nzama replied that very few firearms had been lost, and the Metro had adopted a style of internal audit that had helped.

Chief Ngcobo said that within the JMPD, nine firearms had been lost. Six of these losses were caused by young officers who had just joined the force, and two were lost during a domestic violence case, and the Metro was dealing with the case. No officer was allowed to leave at the end of their shift with an Uzi or an R5, which were given out on a daily basis. It was usually new officers who lost firearms, so they had to hand in their firearms every day. In terms of corruption and bribery, Chief Ngcobo pointed out that the citizens who offered bribes should also be held accountable. More work was needed to ensure that the public did not offer bribes. There was a number that the public could phone if they had a complaint about an officer. He also said that there was usually an issue with unions when they were trying to prosecute corrupt officers. On the issue of absorption was a political decision and the Metro would have to comply with whatever decision was made. He noted that when cars were parked under bridges or under trees, this was sometimes for tactical reasons. Metro Police would sometimes leave their cars there and get into the SAPS’s cars so that they could conduct a raid.

The Chairperson said that the question related to officers staying in parked cars, presumably either sleeping or loafing.

The Chairperson asked Chief Ngcobo if it was fair to say that the Metro police were jack of all trades and champions of none.

Chief Ngcobo replied that Metro police did not have the power to investigate cases but that was the only difference between them and SAPS. Metro police had been doing well in last five to ten years. There was high visibility, and they had also been the leaders in xenophobia cases. He said he was proud to be a Metro police officer.

Ms Van Wyk wanted to correct the impression of what the Minister had said. She noted that the Minister never said that the Metros must absorbed within the police, but had said there was work being done to achieve a single police service, and that he had instructed the Secretariats to do research on the matter and to come forward with different models on how this could be done. It would be a long process with consultations. At least one of the metros had indicated it was using intelligence. Since the Metro Police had no right to do so, it was already on dangerous ground. There was no absorption and no talk of it whatsoever.

Mr Arno Lamoer, Lieutenant General: Visible Policing, SAPS, made a comment about the issue on firearms. He said that between 1999 and 2000, when the MPDs were established, there were 1337 firearms stolen or lost, but during the last few years the control over firearms really improved. The Metros’ co-operation on this was also very good. During the monthly meetings many of these issues were discussed and all metro chiefs had to submit their operational plans to the provincial manager.

Mr Gary Kruser, Lieutenant General: SAPS, said that SAPS drew up a yearly training plan for courses, and if requests for certain course were made, then SAPS would run them, provided the budget allowed for this.

The Chairperson asked General Lamoer to explain the issue of the Government Gazette.

General Lamoer replied that Government Gazette 20142 had contained regulations issued under the Police Service Act, in which the duties and functions and mandates of the Metro police were explained. It stipulated how they had to interact with CPS and how they had to interact with provincial police. The Committee would be more informed once it had gone through the document.

The meeting was adjourned.