Western Cape Police Oversight and Community Safety Minister Anroux Marais held her initial one-on-one meeting with newly appointed Provincial Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Sizakhele Dyantyi.
The engagement aimed to outline safety priorities and establish a framework to strengthen cooperation between the provincial government and SAPS.
In the meeting, Marais outlined several priority areas, including:
- Addressing the availability and circulation of illegal firearms.
- Strengthening efforts to dismantle organised criminal networks and disrupt the structures that facilitate violent crime and extortion.
- Establishing a firearm destruction facility in the Western Cape to support the efficient and secure destruction of confiscated firearms.
- Improving rural safety.
- Improving cooperation and coordination between SAPS and other law enforcement agencies, including the enhancement of intelligence-gathering and sharing.
- Strengthening cooperation between SAPS and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), with a particular focus on ensuring that investigations translate into successful prosecutions and convictions; and
- Improving the experience of residents when accessing policing services, particularly at Community Service Centres.
Marais said: “The appointment of a new provincial commissioner gives us an opportunity to strengthen cooperation and adjust how we collectively approach policing and safety in the Western Cape.”
“My responsibility is one of oversight, but effective oversight must be informed by constructive engagement, transparency and a shared understanding of the safety challenges facing our communities,” she said.
Lt General Dyantyi said his priorities align with Marais’s, emphasising tackling illegal firearms and organised crime, enhancing community service at SAPS centres, and securing more successful prosecutions.
Marais stressed that the Western Cape needs sufficient personnel, funding, and operational support to meet its policing demands effectively.
Marais emphasised that resources remain a major concern, committing to engage national government to ensure Western Cape police receive the necessary personnel, equipment, and support.
Both Marais and Lt General Dyantyi agreed to strengthen cooperation on identified priorities. They committed to open communication, working constructively within their mandates, and presenting a united front.
IOL NEWS
Nokubonga Ndlovu
iol.co.za