DA agrees with Westbury residents: enough is enough

2 October 2018

Police Minister Bheki Cele has once again failed to speak to the plight of yet another community hamstrung by violent crime.

Today, the Minister visited the crime-ridden community of Westbury in Johannesburg where residents have been protesting against violent crime.

The Minister promised that a task team will be deployed to patrol the streets and that an investigation into allegations of police involvement in criminal activities would be launched.

These promises are all well and good but mean nothing to the community of Westbury if they are not actioned with immediate effect. The Democratic Alliance will hold Minister Cele accountable for these promises. This cannot be another one of the failing ANC’s broken promises. By not acting the Minister will join the long queue of failing ANC politicians politicking with the lives of the people.

The failing ANC government has time and again proven that they are a government of empty promises and are incapable of fighting crime. They simply do not have a plan.

Unlike the failing ANC government, the DA is not a party of empty promises. Where we govern we go above and beyond to keep our communities safe despite our limited mandate. Due to under-resourced police services, the City of Johannesburg has recruited an extra 1500 JMPD officers to boost law enforcement. The City has also introduced a K9 narcotics unit tasked with tracking down on drug trafficking in the City.

A DA national government would:

Send the army into volatile, crime-ridden communities to establish order.

Introduce specialised units.

Work to make the police focused on serving and protecting with passion.

Since the outbreak of the protests in Westbury, the DA has been in ongoing consultations with residents regarding their concerns and will meet with community leaders in due course.

Myself, together with members of the DA’s Team One South Africa and DA Premier Candidates will be starting a tour around the country to hear first-hand what we can do better to make our communities safer.

Communities like Westbury do not only need more police patrolling in their communities, they need an honest and professional police service who they can trust to fight crime and keep them safe.

As the ANC chooses to turn a blind eye to spiralling violent crime - vulnerable communities across the country have become paralysed by fear as gangsters and thugs continue to run amok.

South Africans are sick and tired of fearing for their lives and that of their children.

The DA is the only party that is truly committed to combatting crime, fighting corruption and establishing an honest and professional police service.

Issued by John Steenhuisen, DA Team One South Africa Spokesperson on Crime, 2 October 2018