The South African Policing Union (SAPU) would like to commend and salute thousands of law abiding citizens who joined the police against the rampant acts that we have seen in the country in the past 48 hours. SAPU commend all patriotic citizens who have shown through their actions that even though they had the choice of participating in the criminal acts such as looting and vandalism that are engulfing the provinces of KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng. Courageous acts of law–abiding citizens vindicate SAPU’s long held motto that states: “TOGETHER WE CAN MAKE THE DIFFERENCE”. Unfortunately, it is impossible for police officers to succeed in bringing an end to riots in Kwa-Zulu Natal and Gauteng without the assistance of the community. SAPU once again wants to acknowledge the constitutional rights of all South African citizens to peacefully protest as per legal requirements; as there is no political objective to justify what is currently happening. SAPU is saluting the leadership in provinces who have stood firm in not allowing violence and looting in their provinces. We are urging citizens to not take the law into their own hands as vigilantism is also illegal. SAPU is calling for the urgent revival of local policing forum structures in order for them to work with the police. The resurgence of Community Police Forum structures (CPFs) can be very successful if community leaders, business leaders, traditional leaders, the civil society and other non-governmental organisations all work together. The harsh reality of the past 48-hours is that many people will be left jobless, and that many others have suffer massive losses which will be either impossible or extremely difficult to recover from, further negatively influence an already unstable and fragile economy. SAPU welcomes the announcement of the deployment of the army by the State President with reservations, and acknowledge that police officers are outnumbered. If community members were willing to obey and work together with the SAPS, there would have been no need for the deployment of the army; however, this is only a short-term solution and not sustainable. SAPU is calling on the SAPS management to act with speed in implementing the recommendations by the multinational panel of experts that was established by SAPS as a result of the Farlam Commission of Enquiry, to assist in implementing its recommendations, as the union unfortunately has not seen much happening on the ground. SAPU further calls on all political parties to set aside any differences that they might have and unite to resolve violence that has rarely been seen in the history of the country’s democracy, as crime has no political affiliation and no colour. The union also wants to remind people to be very careful before sending and forwarding videos and other information found on social media, as some of these videos and information are old/false and can escalate to fuel further unrests. Therefore, be vigilant, and careful to not destroy yourself by joining in on the disinformation on social media. The SAPS is still in the back foot in terms of public order policing and crowd management, therefore SAPU commends its members who stood firm and maintained maximum discipline while being provoked. SAPU is encouraged by the fact that no one is blaming SAPS as the police is often made a scapegoat whenever there are violent protests. If we work together as social partners in this country, crime and many other issues such as poverty and joblessness can be eradicated in South Africa, but first, South Africans will need to stand together to work towards one goal, and that is to stand firm against all criminal acts.

SAPU RELIEVED AND JOYOUS ABOUT LONG-AWAITED ANNOUNCEMENT OF COVID19 VACCINES FOR SAPS AND DCS The South African Policing Union (SAPU) would like to welcome the decision to finally start rolling out the Covid-19 vaccination for police officers and prison warders within days. According to Acting Health Minister, Mmamoloko Kubayi the details of 80% of police officers had already been transferred from the public service salary system to the vaccination registration system which is the same method used to register teachers. The Health Department’s Deputy Director General Nicholas Crisp was noted saying that the department has identified 145 000 officials and 36 000 civilians working in the police service and that the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) will be prioritised with SAPS and the South African National Defence Force (SANDF). SAPU has been urging the Minister of Police, Bheki Cele to fight to prioritise the vaccination of our members and while SAPU is still not satisfied with the manner in which the Covid-19 vaccination roll-out to other essential and front-line workers such as employees of SAPS, the DCS and traffic has been handled, the union is relief that there is finally some progress. Therefore, SAPU wants to encourage its members to get the vaccine as this third wave of Covid-19 is horrific and much worse than anyone could ever imagined one year ago. It is the duty of all frontline and essential workers to set an example to the general public to protect themselves as well as their families. SAPU further wants to plea with the management of SAPS, the DCS and traffic to ensure that each employee is accommodated whether an employee has a medical aid or not. SAPU is aware of the fact that there is much contradicting information circulating about the effectiveness and safety of the vaccine; however, employees must ensure that they educate themselves with factual and correct information and not believe false and misleading information which only purpose is to cause unnecessary panic and confusion. Up to date an alarming high number of SAPS, DCS and traffic employees have passed away due to Covid-19, resulting in a shortage of manpower and severely affecting service delivery as many police stations and departments have to close temporarily to be disinfected every time an employee test positive for Covid-19. SAPU would like to use this opportunity to thank the President, Mr Cyril Ramaphosa for leading the country during this pandemic and for implementing a level four lockdown in the midst of the third wave of the pandemic to assist and ease the pressure on all frontline and essential workers. Unfortunately, the rollout of the Covid-19 vaccines has not been without challenges and embarrassment such as a shortage of vaccines, poor administration, using different vaccines, insufficient funds, and disruptions to essential health services, and therefore SAPU will closely monitor every step of the vaccination roll-out process and continue to fight for the basic human rights of our members to have access to preventative medical care and assistance. Issued by: South African Policing Union (SAPU)

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

The South African Policing Union calls upon President Cyril Ramaphosa to declare police killings a national disaster. SAPU is extremely unhappy that the issue of police killings in South Africa is not receiving the necessary attention it deserves. It seems as if police officers are treated as step-children of the state because when a police officer is attacked it is business as usual and as if nothing has happened. SAPU is making this latest call after an off duty 38-year-old male police officer was killed in cold blood in Vrygrond in the Western Cape early on Sunday morning, 11 April 2021. The continued killings of police officers in our country whether on or off duty reached an alarming rate a long time ago. SAPU has consistently condemned police killings, and there have been national summits and other plans to curb this scourge to no avail. SAPU is calling on the commander in chief to take police killings seriously and act with speed. After declaring police killings, a national disaster, SAPU would expect the state to initiate legislation and to declare police killings treason. It is clear that police officers have been left out on their own to dry. It is totally unacceptable that police officers are killed at this rate in our country and nothing concrete is done to curb these senseless killings of police officers. SAPU is also calling upon all law abiding citizens to come forward with information that will lead to the arrest and successful prosecution of police killers. The tragic and brutal killings of police officers in this country deserve the same attention as the Covid-19 pandemic and gender based violence. Police killings is also a pandemic that the whole population should be concerned about. The justice system should show no mercy to police killers. SAPU would like to send its heartfelt condolences to the family of the slain cop. SAPU shares the family’s pain; this is not only a loss to the family but a national loss, as this patriotic son of our land served his country until the very end. SAPU is pledging not to rest until his killers are brought to book.

The South African Policing Union (SAPU) is seeking an urgent audience with the Minister of Correctional Services Mr. Ronald Lamola and the National Commissioner of Correctional Services, Mr Arthur Frazer over the controversial decision of the Department of Correctional Services (DCS) to ditch 2064 trainees. We are extremely disappointed that the DCS would act in this irresponsible manner when there are severe human resource challenges in the department. These 2064 trainees have already been within the DCS as they have been trained at the Zonderwater Training College in Cullinan, Gauteng. We find it grossly irresponsible of the DCS to train such a large number of people, make promises to them about absorption and all of a sudden dump them with the lame excuse that their learnership programme has expired. The so-called expiry date of a contract is neither here nor there. Correctional officers have been attacked and in some instances even killed due to the shortages of officers in our correctional centres. SAPU is of the firm view that this is the time for the DCS to take advantage of the 2064 trainees to mitigate against the staff shortages that the department faces. The absorption of these trainees will go a long way in addressing the serious challenge of the shortage of correctional officers the department is currently faced with. Already correctional officers who go on retirement, others resigning because of seeking greener pastures, others unfortunately losing their lives for various reasons have never been replaced for some time now. SAPU is also concerned about the short-cut approach of the DCS to employ SANDF youth reserves who have not been professionally trained to rehabilitate offenders. We do not have any issue with the SANDF youth reservists as such, however, we are of the view that they have been thrown into the lion's den with no expertise or experience to deal with inmates. We have written a letter to the Minister and the Commissioner seeking clarification on the issue. We are not alarmists nor trying to cause unnecessary panic in our country, however SAPU would like to warn the authorities not to let these trainees roam around the streets doing nothing. We want to engage the authorities with the sole intention of finding an amicable resolution of the matter. We are also calling upon the Department of Public Service and Administration to source funding from the National Treasury in order to correct the imbalances in the entire public service. The severe human resource shortages in the DCS and other public sectors like the police compromise service delivery. As a country we are far behind in terms of the United Nations international ratio. These severe shortages have a negative impact on the morale of the current workforce. Any overloaded staff lacks motivation.

The South African Policing Union (SAPU) would like to call upon National Commissioner, General John Khehla Sitole to launch a speedy investigation into serious allegations levelled against the Mpumalanga Provincial Police Commissioner, Lieutenant-General Mondli Zuma. The allegations levelled against Lt-Gen. Zuma are so serious that there is no way that they can be swept under the carpet. Serious allegations like these are not only a major cause for concern, they are also criminal. Without passing any judgement in this issue, SAPU feels it is only fair that General Sitole investigate these allegations. These allegations will compromise service delivery as already police officers are demoralized. We are also sensing that these allegations could be a source of instability in policing in Mpumalanga. SAPU is calling for a speedy and a transparent investigation. If the allegations are true, disciplinary and criminal processes should ensue and if they are found to be untrue, the Provincial Commissioner should be given the space to perform his duty without any hindrance. The cloud hanging over Lt-Gen. Zuma must be dealt with swiftly. We call upon General Sitole to act with speed regarding these serious allegations. We cannot afford to have a situation like this where the top cop in a province is alleged to be acting unlawfully like this. We are extremely unhappy that the Mpumalanga SAPS is alleged to be involved in behind the scenes and dark corner deals of secret promotions without following due processes. Hundreds of police officers countrywide, including in Mpumalanga, have been waiting for their long overdue promotions. Allegations of unfair and undeserved promotions will cause unnecessary tensions within our ranks. Issued by: SAPU

The South African Policing Union (SAPU) is shocked, disappointed and in disbelief over the arrest of a top police commander regarding her suspected involvement in the so-called police blue lights corrupt deal. It is alleged that the Deputy National Commissioner will face fraud, corruption, theft and money laundering charges. Unfortunately, the well-known principle of equality before the law applies in all cases of suspected crime as no individual is above the law. Without passing judgement on the case, SAPU would like to call upon the National Commissioner General Khehla Sitole to act swiftly by protecting the image of the SAPS as SAPU will closely monitor the national commissioner’s response to this embarrassing development. SAPU has previously witnessed with dismay junior officers swiftly suspended and dismissed for petty offences while senior officers suspected of serious offences were protected or suspended with full benefits for an unlimited period of time. SAPU is not asking for any favours or preferential treatment for the Deputy National Commissioner, but for consistency and fairness and that the SAPS will follow its own disciplinary procedure. SAPU is warning the National Police Commissioner, General Sitole that if he allows the accused Deputy National Commissioner to waste taxpayers money while being suspended with full benefits, the Union will hold him personally liable for such a wasteful expenditure. Situations like the Richard Mdluli and Khomotso Phahlane fiascos should be avoided at all cost. The SAPS disciplinary code is clear that any disciplinary processes should be concluded within 90 days. SAPU respects the notion of innocent until proven guilty, however the mere arrest of a senior police commander already calls for a disciplinary action. The serious allegations of corruption within the SAPS make one to believe that the institution is captured and it should seriously consider to appear before the Zondo Commission of Enquiry. The majority of police officers are still working tirelessly to root out corruption and fraud in our society, and it is a shame that senior SAPS commanders who are supposed to be an example of law and order are investigated and arrested for fraud and corruption to name a few. This is definitely not contributing to a positive morale among police officers, but rather demotivating hard working and honest officers. Therefore, SAPU is saluting each and every police officer who took part in this investigation for their contribution in the arrests that were made and not being scared off by investigating one of its own senior officials. Issued by: SAPU