Winning the war on crime: A necessity for South Africa's economic revival - Cosatu

Our painful levels of crime are one of the greatest obstacles to attracting the domestic and foreign investment necessary to boost economic growth from the 1% it has been stuck at for the past two decades, to the 3% plus necessary to slash our dangerously high unemployment rate of 42.4%.

Investors are reluctant to invest in economies where crime and corruption are rampant.  Companies must spend scarce money on security.  Skilled South Africans with significant funds are leaving in worrying numbers to safer places overseas.

The lives of workers are scarred by the high rates of often violent crimes in our townships and across society.  It is worse for women and girls who fear for their lives in their communities, in public transport on their way to work or school, and even at their workplaces.

Just as it was critical for the African National Congress led government to intervene and put in place a decisive turnaround plan for Eskom, Transnet, Metro Rail and the South African Revenue Service (Sars) to enable the economy to grow, and thus sustain and create jobs, so to must a bold and aggressive plan be put in place to win the war against crime and corruption.

The government inherited a systemic crisis in 1994 where law enforcement was geared to maintaining the apartheid state in power, to suppressing the struggle for democracy, and to enable white South Africans to live a life of safety and comfort.  No such considerations were given to the Manenbergs or the KwaMashus. 

Whilst we must acknowledge the 350 years of systemic discrimination and under resourcing of law enforcement in historically Black, Coloured and Indian communities, we must equally accept that 32 years into democracy, society correctly expects to see things improve.

There have been improvements, including a 6% drop in the murder rate in 2025, but that is not enough when millions experience crime and few are convicted.

The government has shown that this can be changed with the remarkable turnaround of Sars over the past few years.  When competent management are appointed, corrupt elements are removed, vacancies are filled and critical skills workers are recruited, and investments in IT and other infrastructure are ramped up; not only will a once embattled state institution stabilise but in fact it will thrive. 

Whilst there is a price tag to be paid today, society, and in particular the working class and the economy will reap the rewards.  This will lead to higher economic growth and more jobs and thus the tax revenue needed to fund public services.

Winning the war against crime and corruption is no different.  A safe society will attract the investments needed to generate jobs and taxes necessary to maintain a peaceful society.

The first step as highlighted by the Madlanga Commission and the Parliamentary enquiry into the state of the South African Police Service (SAPS) is to appoint competent leaders whose integrity is beyond reproach.  For far too long we have tolerated senior leaders of SAPS facing deeply worrying allegations of criminality.

It’s about ensuring that we have sufficient men and women in the SAPS to deliver effective policing.  We witnessed over the past decade an inexplicable decline in the SAPS headcount from over 200 000 to a low of 172 000. 

Fortunately, after continuous engagements with government, it has begun to reverse this trend with headcount now exceeding 180 000.  This shift needs to be accelerated if we are to reach the ratio required to enable effective policing.  A detective sitting with 70 plus dockets will not have the time to give each case the attention survivors of crime deserve.

If we expect SAPS to be able to deal with high levels of crime, then we need to provide it with the essential tools.  These range from continuous and specialised training, to working vehicles, to the latest IT and communications equipment.  Many of these are simply not there for SAPS personnel with scary reports of half of their vehicles no longer working.

Special attention must be paid to developing a comprehensive DNA and biometrics database essential to identifying suspects.  Parliament recently passed a law requiring the DNA samples of all persons convicted of crime to be taken and stored.  This needs to go further and require that Home Affairs record all persons’ biometrics and DNA and provide SAPS automatic access to these.

The rebuilding of SAPS intelligence capabilities is essential if it is to be able to compete against often well-resourced and very sophisticated syndicates and gangs.  This necessitates international collaboration, in particular with regards to poaching and the trafficking of humans, drugs, weapons, stolen vehicles, illicit goods and monies across our air, sea and land borders.

SAPS requires the effective support of government’s law enforcement arms, in particular the National Prosecuting Authority, the judiciary, Correctional Services, SARS, State Security Agency, traffic police and the South African National Defence Force.  All these institutions too must follow the turnaround path set by Sars to enable them to fulfil their mandates and thus ease the pressures upon SAPS.

While government must lead the war against crime and corruption, it can only succeed if it has the active support of social partners, in particular business, labour and civil society and the public at large.  We welcome the partnership set by Organised Business to work with the state in this war.

The government must equally embrace the need to work with labour, and in particular to invest in the hardworking and dedicated members of SAPS.  Key to winning their support is to pay our police a living wage, provide them with the necessary protections and support, and deal with those who target SAPS members.

Whilst these critical measures are critical to winning this war, we can only truly defeat rampant criminality hindering our efforts to grow the economy and create jobs, if society reasserts the moral fibre as a nation and shows zero tolerance towards any type of criminality.

Cosatu General Secretary Solly Phetoe

*** The views expressed here do not necessarily represent those of Independent Media or IOL.

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