Bheki Cele: Community Policing Forums will be funded

Police Minister Bheki Cele has assured the residents of some of the most violent areas in the eThekwini municipality in KwaZulu-Natal that government is prioritising the funding of Community Policing Forums (CPF) across the country.

This follows numerous calls by residents of Inanda, Umlazi and Claremont townships in Durban who attended the Crime Prevention Izimbizo hosted by the Police Ministry and South African Police Service (SAPS) this weekend.

The Umlazi policing precinct has recorded the highest murder figures countrywide. According to the latest National Crime Statistics, 83 people were killed between April and June 2022 in Umlazi. The weekend long Crime Prevention community engagements saw the Police Ministry, SAPS, KZN Department of Community Safety and Liaison as well as the eThekwini municipality team up to decisively deal with causative factors of crime whilst shifting resources to improve policing in the three townships.

CELE: ‘COMMUNITY POLICING FORUMS MUST BE SUPPORTED’

Police Minister Bheki Cele has assured the nation that the funding of CPFs is not a matter of ‘if’ but a matter of ‘when’.

“In principle, we agree that CPFs across the country must be better supported and provided with resources and funds to assist police in crime detection and prevention. It is clear that police need communities and communities need the police, if we are to win this fight against crime. We know and appreciate the role of CPFs, neighbourhood watches, street patrollers and similar anti-crime structures in the policing value chain. This is why the call by communities to fund CPFs is currently being addressed at the highest level,” Cele said.

The Civilian Secretariat for Police Service( CSPS) an entity of the Police Ministry, the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the provincial departments of Community Safety in all nine provinces are exploring possible funding models for the country’s CPFs.

Upon finalisation of a workable model, the funding of CPFs, will form part of the amendment to the SAPS Act, Cele’s office said.

“Meanwhile, In an effort to increase patrols and capacitate police investigations, more police vehicles have been added to the existing vehicle fleet in the two police stations servicing the uMlazi township. A team of investigators will descended to the three townships to look at cold cases and cases closed prematurely, to improve the arrest rate of perpetrators of violent crimes,” said Cele’s spokesperson Lirandzu Themba.