Lerato Mbhiza
Premier Panyaza Lesufi delivered a State of the Province (SOPA) address on Monday evening at Nasrec, South of Johannesburg and applauded the Crime Prevention Wardens, saying they are heroes in terms of fighting crime in Gauteng.
However, the SOPA got off to a chaotic start, as members of the public attempted to storm the hall where the Legislature was sitting.
Members of the EFF also delayed proceedings before the Premier could begin his address, calling for the removal of the crime wardens who were stationed at the hall.
“We are not going to be intimidated by amaPanyapanya and the military battalion of Premier Lesufi. They are not members of this house and they are not going to participate. They are supposed to go to the communities and prevent crime as they were deployed to do.
“What are they doing here? There is no one who is going to save Premier Lesufi in this house, not even the green beans,” says the EFF’s Edwin Mukwevho.
Speaker of the Gauteng Legislature, Ntombi Mekgwe said they will investigate the cause of the chaos that led to the disruption and delay of the State of the Province Address.
“I’m sure as I look around there are no people. What I will do, I’m not saying they were not here, just listen. If you understand English, I’m saying I don’t see people now, but will investigate who these people are and we’ll deal with that particular matter. Can we allow the premier to deal with the speech?”
Lesufi continued his SOPA and said: “Today, we are proud to announce that we have exceeded our initial target and that there are over 7000 young people who are fully and permanently employed by this government as wardens and have joined us in the house today”.
Lesufi added that they will be increasing the number of Crime Prevention Wardens to over 12000. “The current recruits who will be military veterans will remain on a two-year contract”.
Illegal mining
The police have arrested 439 illegal miners to break the chain of Zama Zamas in the province, Lesufi said.
“We are continuously breaking the back of Zama Zamas (illegal miners) in Gauteng. Since the decisive response by the President to our request to address the challenges of illegal mining in derelict mines, there has been a marked decrease in this abhorrent activity in the province.
“Our weekly high-intensity joint operations – “Okae Molao” and “Shanela” – on illegal mining conducted across the province by SAPS, SANDF, GTP, Wardens (CPWs) and Private Security companies are producing results. Between April and December 2023, 439 persons were arrested for illicit mining activities in Boksburg, Dobsonville, Kagiso, Khutsong, Krugersdorp, Primrose, Randfontein, Tarlton, Westonaria, Benoni and Springs”.
He said the Gauteng government is dealing decisively with notorious crime syndicates, especially those involving bank robberies, illegal mining, drug and child trafficking and cash-in-transit heists.
“To date, 79,749 joint operations have been conducted at provincial and district levels in the TISH areas. These operations resulted in 9,244 arrests and the recovery of 1,532 stolen/hijacked vehicles”
Job creation expands,
“During this past year, Gauteng, as the country’s economic hub, experienced an increase of 96 300 jobs, with 31 300 jobs in the last 90 days,” Lesufi said.
“We are proud to declare that since the Covid-19 pandemic, our economy is now firmly back on track, and we are ready to pump our economy further.”
Lesufi revealed that Gauteng has attracted over R68-billion in investments from 261 foreign companies, resulting in about 23 000 direct jobs across 10 high-growth sectors.
Notably, Gauteng hosted the 5th South African Investment Conference, generating R1.14-trillion in investment commitments, with R22-billion earmarked for the province.
He emphasised the importance of economic development corridors and highlighted successes such as the Tshwane Automotive Special Economic Zone, where investments from companies like Ford Motor Company of South Africa have created over 3 000 jobs, with a significant portion sourced from the townships.
Moreover, partnerships with BMW and YFPO are expected to inject R2-billion into the economy, further advancing industrialisation and localisation efforts.
Lesufi welcomed the announcement of the Vaal Special Economic Zone, which is anticipated to attract more than R8-billion in investments focused on green economy initiatives.
He told the house that the 7000 cameras installed in Johannesburg will help to fight crime.
“Today as we address this house, we are proud to report back to you that we have over 7 000 cameras working in an integrated collaborative manner to make our province safer. These cameras were made possible by our partnership with Business Against Crime, SANRAL, VumaCam, and Tinstwalo (a partner from Ekurhuleni Municipality)”.
The aim of the cameras is to help monitor and nab those who are engaging in criminal activities in the absence of police. The cameras will be placed in “crime hotspots” around the province.
Lesufi said a safer Gauteng was emerging as the next level of fighting crime was being carried out.
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