A suggestion by the recently elected City of Joburg Mayor, Dada Morero, to have Africa’s wealthiest municipality employ documented foreign nationals in law enforcement has been rejected.
Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi announced on his X account that Morero’s suggestion has been rejected. Lesufi said the ANC Johannesburg Lekgotla poured cold water on Morero’s idea. Morero is also the regional chairperson of the ANC in Johannesburg,
Lesufi’s statement comes after a video of Morero emerged on X. In the video, he suggested that documented foreign nationals should be hired by the Johannesburg Metro Police Department. Morero said this would assist law enforcement in dealing with language barriers when arresting foreign nationals.
Our police officers can’t speak African foreign languages
In the short video clip, Morero says: “Comrade chair, deputy chair, I always ask this question that none of our police men and women in uniform can speak any of the foreign African languages.
“And the challenge is for us to deal with crime. And you can have all your suspects here before they write their statements, they can plan what they are going to say in front of you without you even hearing what they are saying.
“It might be a culture shock to suggest to this REC but if we are serious about fighting crime in Ward 67, we have no option but those who are properly documented with proper documents can be recruited to the Johannesburg Metro Police Department.
Apologies for pain the proposal caused
Lesufi, however, said on his social media account that Morero’s suggestion had received a cold reception within the party structure.
“We don’t agree with this proposal,” said Lesufi.
“We held discussions with our Regional Chairperson and Executive Mayor
@CdeDada who advised us that the ANC Johannesburg Lekgotla rejected his proposal and he fully accepts the decision not to entertain this proposal further.
“We remain committed to ensure that our law enforcement agencies are appropriately trained to tackle challenges created by crime. Our sincerest apologies for the confusion and pain caused by this proposal,” said Lesufi.
