KwaZulu-Natal premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube has revealed that the province has turned into a killing field with criminals running riot in the streets.
Dube-Ncube made the shocking revelations while addressing a multi-sectoral stakeholder gathering in Durban on Tuesday.
The meeting brought together police top brass, chiefs, community crime-fighting structures, senior government officials, and civil society under one roof to deliberate on strategies to tackle crime.
“All the plans by the government and the private sector to improve lives will come to naught if we do not decisively deal with the scourge of crime in our province and by extension, the country,” said Dube-Ncube.
She said crime has led to disinvestment from key business districts, made people constantly look over their shoulders, and drove up the cost of doing business.
“We have also seen how this scourge has driven away much-needed professionals and technicians from the areas that desperately need them.
“The theft of cellphone tower batteries, hijack of delivery and government vehicles, and cash in transit heists are just a few examples of how the economic and social programmes have been disrupted,” she said.
In her overview of the crime trends and interventions in the province, Glen Xaba, acting head of community safety department, said police are faced with a number of challenges.
In some police stations, said Xaba, there is generally poor infrastructure.
“There are also concerns about the remoteness of some police stations from the communities that they are supposed to serve,” she said.
“Some police stations do not have sufficient vehicles, which makes it difficult to fight crime in affected areas.”
The gathering also learnt that there are about 184 police stations serving more than 12-million people in KwaZulu-Natal.
Dube-Ncube, who was accompanied by MEC for transport, community safety and liaison Sipho Hlomuka, announced that about R100-million has been set aside to assist community crime-fighting structures including community policing forums.
However, some delegates raised concern that government commitments to fund these structures have come to naught.
“We have heard these promises before, but they never materialise,” said one of the delegate.
Ndumiso Ndlela lamented that criminals are now unleashing war onto community members who are seen as crime busters.
“We are being killed and police are not there to assist us,” said Ndlela.
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