By Akani Nkuna
In a bid to strengthen crime-fighting efforts and enhance community safety, Acting Minister of Police Firoz Cachalia has announced plans to establish a national community patroller programme aimed at supporting the South African Police Service (SAPS) and empowering local communities.
Speaking at the release of the third-quarter crime statistics in Hatfield, Pretoria, on Friday, 20 February, Cachalia said the initiative would revive community policing structures and provide stipends and training to participating members.
“We will be looking at re-invigorating community policing by establishing a national community patroller programme that will run in each province. I have tasked the Civilian Secretariat for Police to develop the concept and funding model, with the objective of enabling community members to receive training and stipends to assist with improving safety in their localities,” he said.
Cachalia stressed that patrollers would not perform formal policing duties but would serve as visible deterrents and community liaisons.
“They will not be undertaking policing functions but will be deployed to ensure there are people who can call the police and, through their presence, help prevent crime in areas such as transport nodes, walkways, around schools and other identified hotspots.”
The announcement was made alongside Deputy Ministers and National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola.
Cachalia said the intervention aims to promote law and order in communities where residents sometimes resort to vigilantism when crime persists, placing further strain on police resources.
He also called for stronger collaboration across government departments — including health, education and social development — to advance the Integrated Crime and Violence Prevention Strategy (ICVPS) through aligned service delivery and targeted interventions.
“We are taking steps to strengthen the policing approach to addressing GBV+F and other forms of violence. For example, the SAPS has allocated an additional 999 police members to the Detective Services over the past year,” he added.
Meanwhile, SAPS Crime Registrar Major General Thulare Sekhukhune reported that between October and December 2025, murder cases decreased by 8.7%, while robbery with aggravating circumstances dropped by 11.3%. However, attempted murder increased by 2.5% nationally.
Commercial crime rose by 2%, with 13,181 of the 37,174 reported cases recorded in Gauteng — a trend Sekhukhune said was unsurprising given the province’s status as the country’s economic hub.
Property-related crimes showed notable declines, including 1,494 fewer burglaries at non-residential premises, 2,921 fewer residential burglaries, and a reduction of 314 in motor vehicle and motorcycle theft.
Despite the overall decrease in murder cases, the Eastern Cape recorded the highest provincial murder rate at 19.2 per 100,000 people, compared to the national average of 10.0 per 100,000 in a population of over 63 million.
Arguments, misunderstandings, road rage and provocation were identified as leading causes of murder nationally, with the Eastern Cape accounting for the majority of such cases. Gauteng ranked second, driven largely by vigilantism and mob justice, followed by robbery-related murders.
Rape cases declined by 290 incidents compared to the same period in 2024. However, KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and the Western Cape recorded increases.
Sekhukhune expressed concern over rising incidents of murder and rape at educational institutions.
A total of 52 rapes and seven murders were reported at schools, with special schools recording seven rape cases and tertiary institutions also reporting seven rape cases.
He cautioned that these figures reflect only reported cases, noting that underreporting remains a concern and the actual scale of violence could be higher.
INSIDE POLITICS