Get in touch
0861 927 278
nationaloffice@sapu.org.za
2020 STATEMENTS
The South African Policing Union as part of the greater progressive civil movement would like to welcome the extensive social welfare programme as announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa to sustain millions of vulnerable South Africans in the next coming six months whilst the country is still battling the Coronavirus. The initiative by the state to revive our economic being will benefit millions of our citizens. We want to call upon the government to consider a reasonable compensation to the hundreds of civil servants deployed as part of the essential service employees to assist the country whilst we deal with Covid-19. Those men and women in the frontline who took an oath of office in order to render not just their labour but their lives as well. Our call should not be viewed as countering or jealous of the social assistance measures the President announced. The patriotic sons and daughters of our land have not only left their families, some sacrificing their leave, they remain in the forefront even when conditions and circumstances expose them to this dangerous invisible Covid-19. These civil servants continue to render their labour even when the employer made a U-turn and failed to implement a long overdue increment this month. We are also calling on the President to instruct the Minister of DPSA to implement the salary increments for civil servants by honouring the agreement which was reached at the PSCBC so that we motivate the morale of the members and stop wasting time fighting with each other via the dispute resolution mechanism. Workers are already in the field exposing their lives to the Covid-19. We don’t have time for unnecessary delaying tactics by the employer. We are calling on President Ramaphosa to seek additional funding to compensate all civil servants deployed during the Covid-19. We are calling for a special allowance to be paid during the next six months. We would not want to state the figure per employee however it should be reasonable. It is clear the government cannot hide behind the excuse of lack of funds, what we are calling for is a six months’ special allowance for those in the frontline. It would be a disaster if such essential services employees had refused deployment or if they will work to undermine their deployment. The government should avoid to create unnecessary tensions and demoralize these employees as they are the backbone of the lockdown enforcement campaign. Issued by: Tumelo Mogodiseng General Secretary
The South African Policing Union has learnt with embarrassment, shock and disbelief the arrest of six police officers for allegedly stealing more than R30 000.00 from people at a roadblock on Saturday. The officers attached to the Brooklyn and Silverton police stations, allegedly asked for a R100 bribe from a driver and two passengers after realising they were not carrying permits for travelling during lockdown. It is alleged that the officers stole the money when they were searching a car during the lockdown enforcement roadblock. We respect the notion that we are presumed innocent until proven guilty after due processes however, this incident marks a dark history in the police. The majority of the men and women in blue are people of great integrity. They wear their blue uniform with pride and honesty. We cannot allow the good name of the police to be tarnished by few rotten elements. It must also be acknowledged that, these officers were arrested by their colleagues meaning no matter how painful it is, they were willing to arrest one of their own. SAPU would like to call upon the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) to act impartially and not to allow itself to be influenced by either the public or the media. The IPID must act without fear or favour. We will closely monitor the IPID probe to ensure objectivity. We do want to discuss the merits of the case in the public space however, it is not practically possible for six police officers to act the same way as all of them. It is likely that the investigation will identify the culprits and they should face the law. We would also like the authenticity of the photos circulating in various social media platforms verified. Some of these photos look as if they were manipulated. We are calling upon law abiding citizens to be on the look out of the agenda of those who manipulate photos with the sole intention of creating enmity between the police and the public. As a progressive union, we would also like to call upon police officers not to fall into the trap of corruption. The demon of asking for a bribe must be defeated by all men and women in blue. As much as we know there are two parties that constitute corruption, the corruptor and the corruptee, we urge police officers not to tarnish the good name of the police. The police career is more of a calling than a normal job. We join the police to fight crime and therefore we cannot be the ones that commit crime. The disturbing allegations of police officers being arrested in various parts of the country are totally unacceptable. We cannot afford to have a police service that has to fight crime within its own ranks. Those few rotten elements must be dealt with accordingly. SAPU calls upon the law abiding citizenry to continue assisting the police in the fight against crime in our society. Together we will make the difference. Issued by: Tumelo Mogodiseng General Secretary
The South African Policing Union has learnt that correctional officers in many correctional facilities around the country have been working without the necessary protective gear since the outbreak of the Coronavirus. We do not want to be considered as alarmist, however, the reckless behaviour of the Department of Correctional Services in exposing our members to infection cannot be left unchallenged. We have received complaints from across the country from correctional officers who are concerned about their safety when reporting for duty. As much as it is public knowledge that there are infections in the Wesbank correctional facility in East London in the Eastern Cape, the reality on the ground is that other correctional facilities are battling to provide employees with PPEs. Amongst such facilities we can mention Johannesburg Prison commonly known as Sun City and many others across the country. We acknowledge that the entire world was caught unprepared for Covid-19, however, most employers are complying with the lockdown regulations including providing protective gear to employees. The confined deployment of Correctional Officers in correctional facilities without the necessary protective gear can simply be categorised as sending them to a slaughter house because the threat of infection is well known. SAPU calls upon DCS to act swiftly in rectifying this. As the country is battling with Covid-19, we had hoped DCS as part of the South African state would have avoided any recipe for confrontation and unnecessary tension. As a responsible union we would have failed our revolutionary responsibility if we do not warn DCS about this potential disaster. The officers who are working without protective gear are not only exposed to danger, they expose their families and the communities they live in. This behaviour of DCS is counterproductive as it renders the lockdown a fruitless exercise. We will consider other legal avenues to guarantee the safety and lives of our members. We cannot by any means compromise the safety and the lives of correctional officers. Issued by: Tumelo Mogodiseng General Secretary
The South African Policing Union calls upon the SAPS management to introduce a system where police officers are tested for the Coronavirus when they are reporting for duty. We have noted with grave concern that the issue of the Covid-19 has not yet been taken seriously by both the management and the workforce. Police officers are in the forefront in the battle against the spread of the virus in the country. They are amongst the workforce that is exposed a great deal to the virus. The infection rate in South Africa makes it an urgent that police officers get tested. This will help in taking the necessary steps in placing those infected in the compulsory isolation process commonly known as quarantine and also protecting those not infected. SAPU is calling upon the SAPS management not to drag its feet on this matter. We want to avoid a situation where a greater number of the police service is infected and have to be quarantined. SAPU would also like to call upon police officers themselves to take the initiative and get tested. It is better late than never. As adults we have to act like that and be responsible. Even with those who test positive, it has been proven that it is not the end of the road, there's life after Coronavirus. Our own General Secretary Tumelo Mogodiseng has already tested and fortunately his results came back negative. As our motto says “together we will make the difference”, we will beat the virus. We are calling on the powers not to come with a lame excuse like lack of resources or funds, this is a proactive approach to avoid the rapid infection of police officers that can put our country without an active police service. We will have an audio with the Police Minister Bheki Cele to place this progressive proposal on the table. SAPU is also calling on infected police officers not to come on duty. They have to protect themselves through quarantining themselves. By acting responsible they will also be protecting their colleagues and their families. Victory is certain! Issued by: Tumelo Mogodiseng
The South African Policing Union is seriously considering a court interdict to compel the Department of Public Service and Administration to implement the final leg of the agreement the Government signed with public sector unions in the Public Service Co-ordinating Bargaining Council (PSCBC) in 2018. We find it totally unacceptable, reckless and opportunistic for Minister Senzo Mchunu to use the Covid-19 crisis and the country's recent downgrade to junk status as convenient excuses to justify why the Government want to renege on the agreement. It is clear the Government has not been willing to fulfil its side of the bargain because as early as just a day prior to the Budget Speech of the Finance Minister, the Government indicated its willingness not to honour the agreement. That was a long time before the Covid-19 reached the crisis stage it has reached and a long time before the country's economic status was downgraded. SAPU would like to place it on record that our legal team is busy preparing documents to challenge Government on its intended move. As much as we are classified as an essential service, we want to take this route to protect and defend what we believe is the fundamental rights of our members. We cannot allow this Government to undermine collective bargaining like this. If a party to council is allowed to undermine collective bargaining, that would be the reversal of one of the major victories that public servants as part of the working class have secured in the democratic dispensation. This would be the end of the PSCBC itself. SAPU is calling upon other unions to take this fight to the Government. The attitude of Government is completely uncalled for. The DPSA is provoking our members. It is more painful for police officers who are amongst the lowest paid employees in the entire civil service. Police officers are already denied another fundamental labour right as they are not promoted. Hundreds of police officers are long overdue for promotions. Their only hope of some compensation has always been the annual public service salary increment and now with this latest development it is clear that there is nothing to console them. This will also have a negative impact on service delivery as it is a demoralising fact in the low morale police service. We are calling on the Government to lead with example and act with honesty as well. Pay civil servants what is due to them. SAPU calls upon Minister Mchunu, a former union leader himself to assist the constituency that he is coming from. This act of extreme provocation will not be tolerated. There is no way that when the state is facing some challenges, our members will be used as soft targets. The Government can sacrifice other commitments not our members' long overdue salary increments. All public servants are looking forward to the payday in April 2020 and now is the time. Issued by: Tumelo Mogodiseng General Secretary
Wednesday 25 March 2020, Pretoria- The South African Policing Union would like to call upon the SAPS management to introduce an attractive incentive to pay Public Service Act Personnel (PSAP)employees employed within the Police who are not part of employees rendering an essential service. We are making this call fully aware that the Police on their own would never be fully independent of these employees in rendering their service. It has come to our attention that these employees as a support structure of the SAPS could not be compelled to work. They can only be allowed to work either from home or not work at all. It is a reality that we cannot run away from that these employees give the SAPS an important back up. We are referring to PSAP employees like Data Capturers, Typists etc. The lockdown as ordered by President Cyril Ramaphosa who mentioned the group of employees who would be working during the 21 days doesn’t include employees like these. We have been calling on the SAPS management to implement a SSSBC Agreement 2 of 2011 Part D of Paragraph 5.1 that could translate the employees from the Public Service Act personnel to the Police Act. Our position is well-documented that it doesn’t make sense to have employees of the same department employed under different Acts. The management has been dragging its feet to translate the Public Service Act personnel to the Police Act because of a narrow political agenda that they did not want to pay extra costs like the Danger Allowance that police officers are entitled to. We are a revolutionary union that will not allow the employees to be intimidated to during the Coronavirus crisis with an employer that doesn’t pay overtime. The National Disaster that the President has declared unlike a national emergency falls within the Basic Condition of Employment Act. If the BCEA still applies any changes to the conditions of employment for employees are subject to engagement. The SAPS must identity the non-essential employees that they would like them to render service and will be willing to work and state the incentive that they will pay. PSAP employees are conversant with the work that the police do and might be of great assistance during these trying times. SAPU will not compromise on this issue. We will closely monitor the SAPS and oppose any attempt to exploit even reservists. We are patriotic sons and daughters of our country, we are willing to assist during this hour of need, however we are not prepared to be exploited by a selfish employer. SAPU has also noted with concern that, the SAPS has failed to provide the necessary resources for members to use during this COVID 19 crisis. We want to call on the SAPS to make provision for the holding of test of temperature for members when they report for duty and when they knock off. The safety of our members when on duty must be guaranteed. As much as we acknowledge that the country and the world was caught off guard by the break of COVID -19, for the SAPS it is a worst case. It is clear that the SAPS will never be battle ready for any crisis. We are calling upon the SAPS management to look and plan ahead for other crises that might face us. SAPU calls upon PSAP not to be shaken by any threats of disciplinary steps taken against them illegally by the employer. The employer has to pay for their service finish and klaar. We are calling on the SAPS not to play with our member’s emotions. Any attempt to blackmail PSAP will not succeed. SAPU is calling for justice for these employees who would be requested to go an extra mile for the sake of the country whilst they have long been ignored by this insensitive employer. As SAPU we anticipate that the police, nurses and others stand a good chance of being infected and therefore call upon the state to protect all the employees particularly those that are in the frontline. Issued by: Oscar Skommere
The South African Policing Union has noted with dismay the reckless action by the police medical aid-POLMED which has spent thousands of rands placing adverts in national Sunday newspapers about the election of a board of trustees. We would like to condemn this behaviour by POLMED which is clearly undermining President Cyril Ramaphosa who has ordered the cancellation of any public gathering of over 100 people. It is a well-known fact that process would involve certainly over 100 people. This reckless behaviour by POLMED to undermine the President vindicates what SAPU has been stating for some time. The current board of trustees and management of POLMED has gone rogue. We had challenged the Council for Medical Schemes to place POLMED under curatorship because of the instability, incapable leadership and other shenanigans that compromise the smooth running of the police medical aid scheme. SAPU would like to call upon Lieutenant- General Bonang Mgwenya to take drastic measures to ensure that the reckless action by POLMED are immediately reversed. There could be no election of a board of trustees under these trying circumstances that our country and the whole world are faced with. POLMED as a defined benefit falls directly under the SAPS Human Resources Department that General Mgwenya is responsible for. It is POLMED’s sole responsibility to ensure that the medical issues of all members are taken care of including the Coronavirus. The state of POLMED is in paralysis whilst SAPS management is doing nothing. Our members continue to face frustration and humiliation at the conduct of POLMED. SAPU is of the view that POLMED and Government Employees Medical Scheme (GEMS) should provide members with the necessary resources to fight the Coronavirus including Vitamin C supplements, Sanitisers, Masks, Gloves etc. We are calling on these Medical Aid Schemes to provide our members with the necessary immune boosters. These are desperate times that need desperate measures. SAPU is calling on POLMED and GEMS to come out like other Medical Aid Schemes and state what are their plans for members during these trying times. We are calling upon POLMED to withdraw the newspaper adverts that they placed on national Sunday newspapers and suspend the process for the election of a new board of trustees. This process should be put on hold until the Coronavirus challenge has been dealt with fully. Secondly we would like an extremely independent body take over the process of nomination, selection and election. The process as it stands is compromised in all levels. SAPU would also like to call all POLMED members irrespective of their union affiliation to rise up against the reckless POLMED management. This management has placed their medical aid in an untenable position that has compromised their benefits. Each and every day, police officers continue to be turned away from medical centres because of the unreliability of POLMED. We are calling on all members to work with us in fighting for a better and efficient POLMED. We find it totally unacceptable that to POLMED it is business as usual. There can be no normal situation in POLMED under an abnormal management. SAPU is calling upon General Mgwenya to act with speed in normalising the situation at POLMED. As SAPU we are prepared to take any legal steps in fighting for justice at POLMED. We will not allow POLMED to be captured for selfish interests that do not benefit members. We are extremely concerned that POLMED would use thousands of rands placing adverts in national Sunday newspapers that only a few of its members could afford to buy such newspapers. It seems as if even that exercise was not done genuinely to reach as many members as practically possible. The management continue to misuse hard earned funds in a fruitless exercise. Issued by: Tumelo Mogodiseng General Secretary
The South African Policing Union is seriously considering a Constitutional Court challenge to the constitutionality of Section 49 of the Criminal Procedure Amendment Act that deals with when police officers can use what is called minimum force to protect themselves. We are of the view that this section exposes our members to danger as they die violently whilst busy thinking about the consequences of protecting themselves against armed criminals. We want the Constitutional Court to declare this section unconstitutional as it leaves men and women in blue exposed to armed criminals. We have noted with concern the violent killing of a police official in Gauteng and the wounding of two others in KwaZulu-Natal. Both these incidents happened over the past weekend. SAPU believes in order to curb these senseless killings, police officers should be allowed to hit back at criminals. The time of considering how dangerous the situation is for a police official to shoot back doesn’t make sense. It risks them being killed whilst still thinking about the next move. We want to call upon officers once again to treat any crime scene as a danger zone and be fully armed for any eventuality. The alarming high rate of police killings in South Africa is not different from a war zone. We call upon police officers not to die with their weapons of trade including firearms. It is now time for police officers to show criminals they are professionally trained to use their firearms. We are treating this issue with the urgency it deserves. SAPU would like to send heartfelt condolences to the family of the Gauteng officer and wish the two KZN officers a speedy recovery from their injuries. As a responsible union, we will fight their battle in the courtroom now. We have appealed to the government to no avail. If the Constitutional Court challenge doesn’t succeed we will still approach the same court to compel the government to come with practical measures to stop police killings. It is clear that the South African state is run by the Concourt, that is why we are appealing to it as well to come to our rescue. Issued by: Oscar Skommere
The South African Policing Union (SAPU) is delighted to congratulate and support the National Commissioner, General Khehla Sitole with his appointment as Chairperson of the Southern African Regional Police Chiefs Cooperation Organisation (SARPCCO). SAPU would like to encourage General Sitole to continue the difficult task of fighting corruption not only in South Africa, but also now in other African countries. General Sitole has vowed to fight corruption and has been doing exactly that, and as a result he displayed fighting corruption from the rank of constables to generals. It is unfortunate that other African countries also have to fight political interference from political heads who want to force their inputs on the individual police forces. SAPU is strongly condemning the sarcastic letters that the Minister of Police, Bheki Cele wrote to the National Commissioner especially regarding the restructuring agreement. It is also shocking that the Minister had the audacity to write a letter to NASCOM instructing General Sitole to take disciplinary steps against any member who does not agree with the Minister. The Minister’s interference in the operational running of the SAPS has long been a problem as the Minister is clearly acting outside of his portfolio and wants the National Commissioner to be submissive to the Minister’s ridiculous demands. The restructuring agreement which has been signed on 30 November 2020 has not been opposed by anyone to SAPU’s knowledge and the Minister of Police is the main stumbling block in implementing the restructuring process that was supposed be concluded in April 2021. There is a concluded agreement on restructuring and SAPU wants to see the full implementation as a matter of extreme urgency. By delaying the implementation of restructuring, the Minister is leaving SAPS in a limbo vacuum as all posts of SAPS are declared vacant. The Minister of Police as a political head is supposed to see to it that certain crucial issues such as the Covid-19 vaccination of SAPS employees is prioritised, but he is failing his political role and acts as if he is the National Commissioner of the SAPS. SAPU has learned from Mdluli’s case that Crime Intelligence has been captured by politicians for their own political gain. Another example of political interference that SAPU can refer to was an incident where the premier of the Northern Cape wanted to interfere with the appointment of the SAPS Northern Cape Provincial Commissioner for his own political agenda. Section 207(2) of the Constitution dictates that the National Commissioner must exercise control over and manage the police service in accordance with the national policing policy and the directions of the cabinet member responsible for policing. The constitution (Section 207(3)) dictates that a Provincial Commissioner is appointed by the National Commissioner with the concurrence of the provincial executive. In the event where two parties are unable to agree on the appointment, the National Minister must mediate between the parties. There is a clear distinction between the political responsibility of a political head who is also a member of cabinet in Section 206 and the role of the National Police Commissioner in Section 207(2) who is responsible for the operational part of the SAPS. Regulation 27 empowers the National Commissioner to create a new post as well as filling any vacancy. The report submitted to the Minister must reflect on the requirements for the position and any directives that the Minister may issue. The Minister’s approval for the actual filling of a SMS vacancy is not required in terms of the said regulation, however any appointment to selected posts of the SMS by the National Commissioner must be done ONLY in consultation with the Minister. SAPU is urging the National Commissioner to continue to stand firm against the interference of the Minister and to continue to send a strong message that political interference should not be tolerated. SAPU once again wants to congratulate General Sitole on his appointment as Chairperson of SARPCCO and believe that his appointment will bring change to policing in the African sphere and will support the National Commissioner in any way possible.
The South African Policing Union (SAPU) has noted with grave concern of the deteriorating relationship between the Minister of Police and the National Commissioner of the SAPS which is now unfortunately playing out in the public domain. SAPU, as a responsible and independent union vows to stay impartial between the tug of war between the current National Commissioner of Police and the Minister of Police, and not comment on who has the power to appoint senior managers in the SAPS in terms of legislation; however, SAPU wants to ventilate that as it is in the best interest of all citizens of South Africa, the current impasse has to stop immediately and therefore SAPU is calling on the President of South Africa to urgently intervene as the Office of the President is the only entity that can call these particular roleplayers to order. Unfortunately, the relationship between the National Commissioner of Police and the Minister of Police was strained from the beginning, and miserably deteriorated further over time with the Minister of Police even publically calling on the President to remove General Sitole from office. It is assumed that the President has been trying to deal with the rivalry between the Minister of Police and the National Commissioner in-house for some time now, but a letter written by the Minister of Police to the National Police Commissioner has been circulating publicly proving that the relationship between these two offices is broken irretrievably and that is a national crisis. South Africa is ravaged with crime, a shortage of functional police officers and Gender Based Violence reaching a point of extremity to a point that it was even declared a second pandemic by President Ramaphosa. South Africa cannot succeed to fight crime as a united front while the political and operational head of the SAPS is at warfare with each other. It is impossible that the day-to-day management of the SAPS can be run efficient when critical key appointments of senior officers are done with the National Commissioner announcing appointments in top leadership positions, and simultaneously the Minister of Police is withdrawing these appointments. No respectable institution can be successfully managed in this manner, and certainly not a police force. One cannot but wonder if the rivalry between these two is to score a political goal or if it is for personal reasons? SAPU deems it important to note that the SAPS management and Organised Labour signed a collective agreement in the bargaining council on 30 November 2020 in order to facilitate the restructuring of the SAPS whereby all members of the SAPS had to be appointed in new positions in the organisation. It is thus disappointing to note that almost six months later, only 13 managers have been appointed in new positions from a total of over 170 000 staff members. Failure to successfully implement the above can be solely blamed on the poor relationship between the Minister of Police and the National Police Commissioner. It is important to further note that there are at least two provinces who have been without a provincial commissioner for some time now due to the focus that is on who has the power to appoint a senior official rather than focussing on the best candidate for the job. SAPU has a responsibility to protect all police officers and can only trust that the President of South Africa will act swiftly and decisively in handling this situation once and for all as it is in the best interest of all citizens. History unfortunately also proves that it has been a mistake to appoint a former National Police Commissioner as a Minister of Police, as the role of these two separate individuals might get intertwined and became a grey area as the former might still want to conduct operational tasks, while the blunt truth and reality is that there is no place for inhouse conflict and rivalry in this environment, as the consequences of these type of poor leadership and management will have dire effects on the efficiency of the police force. Issued by: Tumelo Mogodiseng General Secretary