MEC
Shongwe says Mpumalanga
Mpumalanga MEC for Community Safety, Security and
Liaison Vusi Shongwe has indicated that the province is ready for the forthcoming
Festive Season saying that he will fully support all law enforcement operations
in the province throughout the holiday period.
Shongwe was speaking during a meeting with SAPS Management
in the province led by Acting Provincial Meshack Nogwanya. The meeting was held
in Nelspruit on Tuesday 26 November 2014.
The MEC called on the police to work hard to ensure
that all perpetrators of crime are brought to book during the Festive Season.
He said that there is no room for corruption and that he would never support dishonest
police officers calling on the Acting Commissioner to act decisively against
those who are caught on the wrong side of the law.
Last week MEC Shongwe was also briefed by Nogwanya
and his team about their plans for the Festive Season. At the meeting it
emerged that SAPS in the province has brought to book over 670 suspects linked
to crimes such as murder, attempted murder, car hijacking, truck hijacking,
cash-in transits heists, bank robberies and others since 14 November 2014.
The arrests are mainly as a result of an
intervention by a team of detectives from the SAPS Headquarters in Pretoria Gauteng
Shongwe has applauded the police saying that they
were an indication that indeed the province was ready for the holiday season. He
also added that the development augers well for crime prevention in the
province stating that it would also improve communities’ confidence in the police’s
ability to combat crime.
He also added that the arresting of dangerous suspects
is a clear indication of government’s zero tolerance to criminality. The MEC
said: “these arrests will bolster our efforts to mobilize communities to work
with the police in the fight against crime. We are indeed encouraged by our men
and women in blue and we therefore also appeal to community members to come
forward and tell the police if they see any mischief in their communities. We
will not rest but we will ensure that our people have peaceful and crime-free
holidays with their loved ones.
The MEC was further briefed about the extensive
plans that SAPS and other law enforcement agencies would embark on during the
holiday period to ensure that the residents and visitors to the province were
safe.
At the same meeting the MEC was also told about planned
activities for the holidays to deal with expected increase in crime levels. He
has further called on all law enforcement agencies to work even harder to
ensure that communities are safe in their homes and on the road during the
period.
The activities among others include raiding of
liquor outlets, roadblocks, border operations, stops and searches and other
operations aimed at bringing even more crime suspects to book while ensuring
that there is general safety and security.
He also added that all components of SAPS will be
fully supported by the department including Tactical Response Team (TRT) which
is expected to form an integral part of activities such Overall Friday
Programmes.
He has further expressed his satisfaction regarding
the department’s preparations for the forthcoming holidays saying that
stakeholders need to increase their levels of co-operation to ensure that
holiday makers arrive safely wherever they will be going.
On the other hand the MEC has welcomed the successes
recorded by Provincial traffic officers following the discontinuation of 213
vehicles for not being roadworthy. A further 347 vehicles were also impounded
in normal day to day operations across various provincial roads.
Another motorist was
nabbed for excessive speeding while driving at 216 kilometres per hour on N3
between Balfour and Grootvlei.
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