23 June 2008
Introduction
The Gauteng Provincial Government's vision for this province is one where our communities can live, work and travel free from fear, crime and violence. We recognise that this vision is inseparable from our determination to reduce poverty and unemployment. Improving safety through reducing crime will be more difficult while we have inadequate work opportunities and substantial economic inequality in our province. However, we will also not be able to address poverty and unemployment satisfactorily while our society continues to be torn apart by fear and violence.
The recent attacks on our brothers and sisters from other parts of our continent have brought the connections between crime, violence and development into stark view. There is little doubt that the competition for inadequate resources amongst the most disadvantaged sections of our society have contributed to feelings of resentment and anger.
These feelings were unfortunately misdirected towards foreign nationals who were blamed for some of the social challenges that many of our people are experiencing. As a result much of the violence was committed and supported by people who thought that driving foreign nationals out of their areas would improve their local social conditions.
It must be made clear that violence will not improve conditions but is far more likely to make things worse. The recent violence has diverted significant energy and resources away from collective efforts to address the legitimate concerns facing our people. Instead, our attention has had to focus on calming tensions, preventing mob criminality and tending to the urgent needs of the many thousands of people, both foreign nationals and South Africans, who were victims of the violence.
Now that the situation has calmed, we are rededicating our efforts to addressing the ongoing crime and safety challenges facing our province. We have made significant progress since the adoption of the Gauteng Safety Strategy 2006 - 2014. Our continued efforts to implement this strategy have improved our ability to understand and respond to crime in a way that leads to sustainable reductions in crime and ongoing improvements in levels of community safety.
The Gauteng Safety Strategy 2006 - 2014 Civilian Oversight Chief Directorate - R32,673,000 Promotion of Safety Chief Directorate - R47,645,000
It has been over one and a half years since the adoption of the Gauteng Safety Strategy 2006 - 2014 by the Provincial Executive on 30 August 2006. I will now highlight the milestones that we have reached in the implementation of this strategy during the past financial year and outline our objectives for this current financial year of 2008/2009.
You will recall that the Gauteng Safety Strategy consists of four key pillars that frame a number of measurable objectives. These pillars are as follows:
Strategic Pillar 1: Encouraging Community Participation in Community Safety through the Take Charge Campaign.
The Gauteng Safety Strategy recognised the importance of community involvement in any attempts to reduce crime. Only when there are sufficient people in all communities who will not tolerate criminal activity, who refuse to buy stolen goods and who take active steps to improve safety in their neighbourhoods will we achieve the targets we are aiming for in reducing crime. The strategy recognises, however, that any campaign to mobilise people has to deal with various deep rooted challenges such as the high level diversity in our province. Our approach is therefore one of inclusion rather than exclusion to encourage a situation where our diversity is a source of strength rather than a cause of weakness.
The Take Charge Campaign was designed to overcome these challenges and since its launch in March 2007, we have seen a growing social movement against crime take root in Gauteng. To date, approximately 25 000 people throughout the province have directly engaged with the Take Charge Campaign through meetings, events and projects. This number does not include people who have heard of the campaign through various sources such as the media and have of their own volition contacted the Department for additional information or materials to assist them to establish their own local safety initiatives.
As part of the Take Charge Campaign, the Department has been working with various organisations that represent broad sectors of our society to develop sector-specific Anti-Crime Action Plans. In the last financial year the following sectors have finalised their programmes of action: Labour, Youth, Gender,Faith-based organisations, hostel Izinduna and Gauteng-based celebrities. The following two examples demonstrate sector specific programmes of action:
The Take Charge Campaign is emerging as a recognisable brand in the province due to its marketing strategy. The distinctive logo along with the bright orange coloured clothing and materials are unmistakable. Materials that have been developed to assist local communities in becoming practically involved in anti-crime initiatives include:
To consolidate and intensify the Take Charge Campaign, a big event was held on 10 March 2008 at Carnival City, Ekurhuleni. The event provided an opportunity for those already involved in the Take Charge Campaign to take stock of what has been achieved in the first year of the campaign and to plan the way forward for 2008/09. This event was attended by more than 5000 people including sector steering committees, Community Policing Forums (CPF), community patrollers, Police Station Commissioners, and celebrity activists.
In the 2008/09 financial year, the Department will conduct a comprehensive review of the sector action plans. This will allow the Department to identify both successes that have been achieved thus far as well as challenges that still need to be overcome to enhance the impact of the action plans. Particular attention will be given to those sectors that have yet to finalise and start implementing their Anti-Crime Action Plans. Steps are being taken to further strengthen the Communications Division in the Department to increase its capacity to better engage with the media and communities throughout the province.
This has been a successful campaign to date and clearly demonstrates what can be achieved if we all work together to tackle crime. In this financial year we will endeavour to further broaden the reach of the campaign so that we can increase its impact.
Strategic Pillar 2: Improving the Quality of Policing in Gauteng
The South African Police Service (SAPS) has a vital role to play in to improve safety in Gauteng. It is important that those who commit the most heinous crimes are relentlessly tracked down and brought to justice. Our aim is to substantially increase the risks to those who undermine our society for their own selfish gains. It has long been recognised internationally and locally that the ability of the police to reduce crime is largely contingent on the extent to which they function professionally and their willingness to be held accountable. When this is achieved, the police can garner significant support from the community which in turn reduces the space for criminals to operate with impunity.
Given the importance of the police for the whole of our society, our Constitution provides various government agencies a role to play in enhancing the accountability of the police so as to promote continual improvements in their effectiveness. It is the Provincial Governments specific role to oversee that the police operate effectively and efficiently; police misconduct is dealt with; that the police are sufficiently visible and to promote good community police relations.
Since July 2006, I have publicly presented regular six-monthly reports detailing the crime and policing situation in Gauteng. The information for each report is obtained from our Gauteng Information on Police Performance System (GIPPS) which combines and analyses data from the police and other sources. Each report presents details about changes in police activity compared to the same time period the previous year and identifies key challenges that need to be addressed. The report further explains what the Provincial Government is doing to address crime in the province and presents information on the key crime trends for the six-month period. The purpose of providing the public with these reports is to enhance transparency and accountability about our efforts to improve safety in Gauteng.
My next detailed six-monthly Gauteng Crime and Policing Report will be for the period January to June 2008. This report will be sent to all our stakeholders and partners including the media. I encourage all to read and engage with the contents of the report once it is released.
Tackling Armed Robbery in Gauteng
Aggravated robbery is committed by armed individuals who threaten or use violence to steal from people. In most instances these crimes take place in public spaces such as in the streets and near transport nodes. However, a significant number take place in peoples homes, places of work and in the form of vehicle hijackings. Although total levels of crime are decreasing according to the 2007 National Victimisation Survey conducted by the Institute for Security Studies, aggravated robberies are primarily responsible for the high levels of public anxiety about crime in the Gauteng.
In the last budget speech it was announced that a project had been initiated to enhance the strategic capability of the provincial SAPS to tackle the perpetrators of aggravated robbery. This project resulted in the Department of Community Safety and the SAPS jointly developing the Gauteng Aggravated Robbery Strategy. It is apparent that a majority of the perpetrators of 'Trio Crimes', referring to hijacking, residential and business robberies are committed by repeat offenders who are supported by those that buy and resell stolen goods. The strategy provides guidance to various components and levels within the SAPS and other agencies to collectively work towards a core objective of arresting and prosecuting as many perpetrators and those involved in their support networks as possible over the next 12 months.
Although we can anticipate an increase in arrest rates, the key challenge is ensuring that perpetrators are successfully convicted and sent to prison where they will no longer pose a threat. Therefore, a key component of our strategy flows from the President's announcement in his February 2008 State of the Nation address that there will be "changes to establish a new, modernised, efficient and transformed criminal justice system." We will be working with the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to establish a pilot project that will result in a case screening mechanism at regional courts to focus attention on criminal cases such as those related to aggravated robberies.
The recently established Gauteng Crime Management Centre (CMC) will drive and track the implementation of the strategy. The CMC will coordinate and analyse all available information about incidents of aggravated robberies, the perpetrators, their modus operandi and their support networks. The purpose is to strengthen the ability of the police to proactively tackle the people who commit these robberies. Furthermore, the CMC will track the performance of police stations and detectives tasked with investigating cases of aggravated robberies. Where it becomes evident that additional assistance is required, this will be made available. For example, direct assistance will be provided through the Provincial Detective Support Teams (PDST) which will assist local level detectives with gathering and processing evidence of cases where violence has been used against victims.
During the last financial year good progress has been made in reducing certain types of aggravated robbery such as Cash-in-Transit Heists, Bank robberies, street robberies and residential robberies. For those interested in further details about residential robbery and what is being done about it in Gauteng, my office published an article in the March 2008 edition of the South Africa Crime Quarterly journal produced by the Institute for Security Studies.
Nevertheless, overall levels of aggravated robberies are still too high and we continue to face challenges in reducing the numbers of business robberies, vehicle hijacking and truck hijacking. However, with the implementation of the Gauteng Aggravated Robbery Strategy and the additional capacity provided by the Crime Management Centre, we expect to start seeing positive changes in these crimes during this financial year.
Strengthening the Monitoring of Police Performance
During the last financial year we introduced the Gauteng Information on Police Performance System (GIPPS) to strengthen the Provincial Government's ability to oversee policing in the province. Using regular monthly key indicators, we are able to track the changing crime patterns and police performance for the province as a whole and for each of the 130 police stations.
Furthermore, an additional component to GIPPS called the Gauteng Police Station Performance Review Process was introduced. Following an analysis of the information we receive through GIPPS, five police stations are engaged for a closer performance review each month. Stations are chosen as a result of notable increases in violent crime in their precincts. In preparation for the review the Department analyses a range of statistical indicators relating to a specific police station's performance in arresting and investigating the perpetrators of serious violent crimes such as murder, rape and robbery. In addition to the statistics, the Department conducts interviews to provide further insights into the key strengths and challenges of a specific station.
Following the station performance assessment, the relevant police station management teams are called into a monthly meeting comprising senior management from the SAPS Gauteng and the Department. In this meeting, each Station Commissioner presents a six-month plan of action to build on the strengths and address the key challenges that are hindering their ability to arrest and effectively investigate perpetrators of priority crimes. Where possible, further assistance is offered to the station. After a period of six-months each station is then reassessed by the Department to determine whether or not the station's performance has improved.
We are currently in the process of assessing the 30 police stations recording almost 50% of the most serious violent crimes in the province. Of the 25 police stations we have assessed thus far, we have noticed various challenges relating to the capacity of the Detective Services. We are therefore particularly pleased to note that Gauteng detectives will be prioritised for participating in the National SAPS Detective Commanders Programme and that we can expect to receive additional detectives by 31 March 2009. This information was contained in presentations delivered by National SAPS Management to the National Assembly Portfolio Committee on Safety and Security on 3 June 2008. We will be closely monitoring the extent to which the additional training and personnel improves the capability of the SAPS to successfully investigate and support the prosecutions of criminals in Gauteng.
The GIPPS Police Station Performance Review initiative will be extended to more police stations in this financial year so that the Department can continue to play a proactive role to systematically support improvements in the quality of local level policing across the Gauteng province.
Improving Police Conduct
Our vision of police transformation requires that steps are taken to ensure that the Gauteng police are widely recognised as hard working professionals with integrity. In no small way does police conduct impact on the effectiveness of the police service to tackle crime and criminals. Police officers who display a lack of interest, are rude, don't act professionally or engage in misconduct undermine public respect and trust in the police. This situation can only benefit criminals as it weakens the police service and therefore the Department pays active attention to its Constitutional Mandate of monitoring police conduct.
In the last financial year, the Department of Community Safety launched the Investigation and Monitoring of Police and Citizen Complaints System (IMPACC) to enhance its capacity to respond to instances of alleged police misconduct. This system allows the Department to electronically log and track all complaints received against police officials by members of the public. The system has the capacity to automatically generate messages to complainants to acknowledge receipt of the complaint and to provide reference numbers and details of Departmental officials who will be responsible for assisting with their complaint.
Furthermore, the Department has loaded all complaints that it has received since the start of the 2004/ 2005 financial year onto the system. This will assist with the analysis of the broader trends and patterns of complaints against the police in Gauteng. During the last financial year the Department received 487 complaints against the police which were categorised as follows:
Departmental investigations were finalised in 452 (93%) of the complaints with 35 (7%) complaints being carried over into the current financial year. In this financial year the Department has introduced weekly complaint inspections process to further improve the investigation and management of complaints received.
The importance of rooting out corruption and misconduct in the police cannot be over emphasised. A single corrupt or ill-disciplined police member can cause a large amount of damage to the public perceptions and trust in the police organisation. I therefore call on police management to pay greater attention to strengthening the internal supervision, disciplinary and investigation systems. Furthermore, I call on all honest and dedicated police officials to report and support investigations into those police members that undermine our police service. Your noble efforts and achievements are undermined by those who do not deserve to wear the uniform.
Strengthening Community Police Forums
We have repeatedly emphasised that improved safety requires active community mobilisation and involvement. While the Take Charge Campaign is the public face of our safety strategy through which to mobilise public awareness, the Community Police Forums (CPFs) are the key structures through which local community safety initiatives should be driven. Our CPF members deserve special thanks as they are volunteers who work hard to improve their communities without payment. For this reason, the Department has dedicated resources to improving the capacity and functioning of CPFs throughout the province.
During the previous financial year the Department assisted a total of 118 CPFs. CPFs were revived in 28 police precincts and given assistance to hold their Annual General Meetings (AGMs) where elections of Executive Committees were undertaken. The Department also provided accredited training to 400 CPF Executive members through the University of Pretoria. The skills that these members will receive will assist them in capacitating their CPFs and will also assist them in their lives more generally. The training consisted of the following six modules: Self Management, Personal Effectiveness, The Art of Supervision, People Management, Basic Management Principles and Service Delivery.
The Department has also started providing further support to CPFs by assisting them to develop and implement local Community Safety Plans (CSPs). A Departmental CSP Development Team was established for the purpose of helping CPFs set up local Community Safety Plan Task Teams. This is done through a process of community consultation with a wide range of community stakeholders such as Local Councillors, Community Development Workers (CDWs), Community Based Organisations (CBOs), Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and the SAPS.
Two workshops are then held to identify local safety concerns and develop a Community Safety Plan. Once this plan is developed, the local CSP Task Team puts together an action plan to guide different role-players in implementing specific tasks. This team then monitors the implementation of the CSP on a monthly basis. The Departmental Development Team monitors each CSP Task Team and provides support where necessary.
So far the Department has assisted the following 10 CPFs with developing their community safety plans: Bramley, Dieplsoot, Cleveland, Ivory Park, Katlehong, Munsieville, Orange Farm, Roodepoort, Soshanguve and Vosloorus. During this financial year an additional 35 CPFs will be assisted in developing Community Safety Plans.
The Community Patroller Programme
To further strengthen public participation in community safety the department implemented its Community Patroller Programme during the previous financial year. The purpose of the patroller programme is to act as the 'eyes and ears' of the community for the purpose of enhancing neighbourhood safety. The programme currently consists of 2 100 trained and equipped community volunteers patrolling 26 different communities in support of the police. The patroller programme focuses on disadvantaged communities with high levels of crime and little or no access to private security. Examples of communities where patrollers have been deployed include Olivenhoutbosch, Evaton, Diepsloot, Moroka, Tembisa, Tokoza, and Kagiso.
Once screened and recruited, the patrollers are sent on a course accredited by the Safety and Security Sector Education Training Authority (SASSETA). Depending on their skills level, patrollers are offered five different grades of training. The initial grade offers skills training in competencies such as basic public relations, the role and function of security, basic self defence, observation, guarding and patrolling, basic radio communication, the use of fire extinguishers, discipline and basic legal aspects related to patrolling. The purpose of the training is to both enhance the capabilities of the patrollers to improve safety in their communities and to further improve their skills levels and thereby enhancing their employment potential.
Once they are trained, the community patrollers are equipped with two-way radios, torches, batteries, a pocket book and clearly marked clothing consisting of a reflective jacket, baseball cap, trousers and canvass boots. A specific administrative system for supervising patrollers has been developed by the Gordon Institute of Business Science. A centralised database is kept of all the patrollers and where they are deployed. In addition, each patroller has a personnel file consisting of a completed registration form, a copy of an identity document, a screening report from the SAPS and a signed copy of the patroller code of conduct.
The deployment of the patrollers is guided by the Police Station Crime Information Analysis Centre officers who are responsible for tracking and analysing local precinct crime trends and patterns. Typically, patrollers are deployed at particular times around specific locations such as schools, shopping areas, pension pay-points, taxi ranks or areas that have been identified as crime 'hot-spots.'
The programme has been generally viewed as a success based on reports from various Police Station Commissioners and community leaders. For example, at a public meeting held at the Philadelphia School in March 2008, the Soshanguve Station Commissioner said that, "Since the introduction of patrollers in the area of Soshanguve, there is no longer robbery in the passages (between buildings)." In Actonville, community member DJ Chester said that "I think that since these guys are around here, the crime is low. No more gun shots at night, less armed robbery and rape." In Katlehong, the CPF has attributed a decline in illegal firearms and robberies to the patrollers who have assisted the police with 50 cases to date. These are but a few examples of where the patrollers have practically improved the safety of local communities.
Given the success of this initiative in practically improving safety in various communities, the Patroller Programme will be rolled out to a further 26 communities following the recruitment and training of a further 2000 volunteers during this financial year. By the end of March 2009 a total of 4000 trained and equipped community patrollers will be deployed in 52 communities across Gauteng.
Strategic Pillar 3: Promoting Social Crime Prevention
While strengthening the criminal justice system is crucial for convicting criminals, it is also very important to address the risk factors that can influence young people in becoming the criminals of tomorrow. It is for this reason that the Gauteng Safety Strategy 2006 - 2014 has adopted a life cycle approach to guide our initiatives to promote social crime prevention throughout Gauteng.
Applied research by the Crime Prevention Research Group at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has demonstrated that it is necessary to understand the life cycle nature of crime if sustainable reductions are to be attained. It is important to recognise that children and young people, who do not receive adequate supervision, care and support; who drop out of school or are exposed to violence or abuse, are at particular risk of later engaging in anti-social and criminal behaviour.
If we are to therefore address safety in the province in a sustainable manner, it is necessary that we do what we can to improve services to our children and those who care for them. It is also necessary that we undertake initiatives that directly engage with young people in a way that minimises the specific risks that could contribute towards their involvement in crime.
As part of our comprehensive strategy to improve safety in Gauteng, the Department has therefore embarked on a range of social crime prevention programmes and initiatives.
Preventing Violence against Women and Children
If we are to successfully reduce the levels of crime and violence in our society in a sustainable manner, it is crucial that we have programmes that support children and their primary caregivers who are typically women. If young children witness repeated violence against their mothers, or if they are subject to violent abuse, the chances of their becoming perpetrators of violence and crime when they grow up, are significantly increased.
As part of the Departmental programme to prevent violence against women and children during the past financial year, 105 community based volunteers were trained to become Safety Promoters in their areas. The intention is to give them the skills and knowledge to identify and assist victims of abuse and to prevent victimisation by assisting men to reflect on the attitudes that can contribute to abusive behaviour against women and children.
A new element of the programme implemented during the last financial year was the establishment of networks for men who had volunteered to become Safety Promoters. These networks are important as they provide men who are concerned with addressing violence against women and children with contacts and support from likeminded men. The first of such networks were established in Mamelodi, Eldorado park, Krugersdorp and Vanderbijlpark.
A Safety Promoters Pocket Book was also developed as a handy reference guide for community based safety activists. The pocket book contains a large amount of information including the contact details of each Police Station Commissioner and their Police Stations and all Government agencies and Non-Governmental Organisations that provide assistance to victims of violence against women and children throughout Gauteng.
An additional initiative undertaken by the Department in the past financial year was the piloting of the Women and Child Safety Audit. These audits have been designed to identify the key risk factors facing women and children in specific communities. The results of the audit can assist Local Governments and other community or government agencies to focus their attention on addressing the specific risks that will minimise the chances of women and children becoming victims of crime and violence in their communities. These audits are conducted by Safety Promoters. They have been piloted in the six precincts of Sophiatown, Rabie Ridge, Tsakane, Protea South, Diepsloot, and Bronkhorstspruit. During this financial year the Department will train an additional 140 Safety Promoters and establish four additional safety networks for men and four additional support networks for women. An edutainment DVD focusing on how to practically improve Child Safety will also be developed and distributed amongst parents and other caregivers of children. Further Women and Children Safety Audits will be conducted and the Department will assist with the implementation of the recommendations that emerge.
One of the priorities is to revise the Gauteng Violence against Women and Children Strategy (VAWAC) which was previously adopted by the Provincial Government. The purpose of this strategy is to coordinate all Provincial Departments with regards to implementing programmes to reduce and prevent violence against women and children.
Ikhaya Lethemba Victim Empowerment Centre
The Ikhaya Lethemba Victim Empowerment Centre has been a Departmental flagship project for a number of years now. Housed in Braamfontein, the centre provides victims of domestic and sexual violence with a range of services at a single venue 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
On admission to the centre, clients seeking assistance undergo an extensive assessment which allows a multidisciplinary team to plan a specialised intervention. If the client does not have accommodation because for example, the perpetrator of domestic or sexual violence lives at her and her children's home, she will then be admitted to the shelter. During the past financial year 346 women and 178 children who were victims of violence received shelter at the centre. Where the victim requires a protection order to keep the abuser away from her, assistance is provided by the legal support unit. A total of 441 victims were assisted with protection orders in 2007/08.
A range of counselling services are also available to victims including initial intake counselling, specialised counselling for children and long-term therapeutic counselling services. A total of 1 002 clients received counselling services during 2007/08.
Victims of sexual abuse may also access a range of medical services. These services include HIV/AIDS testing with pre and post testing counselling, the provision of Anti-Retrovirals (ARVs), the provision of medication for Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STIs), emergency contraception, internal medical examinations and the completion of crime kits during which forensic evidence is collected to assist in the prosecution of offenders. A total of 102 victims received medical services in the 2007/08 financial year.
If the perpetrator is arrested and the criminal case goes to court, the Centre provides victims with court preparation and support services. Research has demonstrated that these services can minimise the secondary trauma that victims may go through during the court trial and assist the victim in being a better witness against the perpetrator. A total of 847 victims received these services during the 2007/08 financial year.
In addition to the above services, clients of the centre also receive a range of other types of assistance. During the last financial year the centre in partnership with the City of Johannesburg established an in-house crèche that provides an Early Childhood Development Programme for children. An NGO called AMCARE is responsible for running the crèche and have submitted a service plan to the Department of Social Development to formally register it. The programme at the crèche is managed by a Social Worker and a full time teacher with support from volunteers. The crèche has the capacity to care for 40 children at any one time.
The Centre also provides a number of skills development programme to its clients. The programmes currently assist clients with acquiring skills in working with computers, catering, hairdressing and Beauty Therapy. Clients are also assisted with joining Adult Basic Education and Training (ABET) programmes that are offered by other government agencies. All women who are financially dependent on their perpetrators or are not employed are encouraged to enter into these programmes so that they can find employment and look after themselves and their children.
In addition to the services provided at the Ikhaya Lethemba Victim Empowerment Centre, the Department also supports 132 local Victim Empowerment Centres (VECs) staffed by a total of 791 volunteers throughout the province. Typically, the VECs are attached to a police station and are there to provide support services to victims of violent crime and sexual abuse.
During the previous financial year, 533 volunteers at the VECs were trained in the following topics:
The VEC volunteers are meant to provide an initial service to victims at a police station and refer them to professional support close to their homes. A key initiative in the current financial year is the establishment of regional offices to coordinate VECs and referrals for victims living in communities in relatively remote parts of the province.
The Victim Empowerment Programme also provides direct support to the police. Following the decentralisation of the SAPS Family and Child Sexual Offences Units (FCS), some officers in these units lost access to resources such as victim friendly interviewing facilities and referral networks. The Department then assisted FCS officers by letting them make use of VEC facilities at police stations to interview victims and provided them with access to victim support referral networks in each region of the province.
The Gauteng School Safety Programme
There are few among us who have not been disturbed by reports of crime and violence that has taken place in and around our schools. Bullying, stealing, vandalism, fighting, the presence of weapons, drugs or alcohol at schools will negatively impact on the development of our learners into productive and law abiding young adults. As institutions that have the primary responsibility of educating and developing our youth, our schools have to be safe havens free of crime and violence.
It is for this reason that the Department of Community Safety and the Department of Education have formed a partnership to roll out the Hlayiseka School Safety Programme. The programme, which was developed and piloted by the Centre for Justice and Crime Prevention (CJCP), is intended to assist schools with establishing a school specific Safety Plan for proactively identifying and managing safety threats. The programme recognises that different schools have different levels of capacity and therefore each school is assessed as the initial part of the development of the School Safety Plan.
During the 2007/08 financial year, a Provincial School Safety Implementation Committee was established to oversee the implementation of the programme in Gauteng. The committee consists of representatives from the Provincial Departments of Community Safety, Education, Social Development and Health and includes representatives from the South African Police Service. The project started with a baseline study on 12 of the schools to establish the nature and types of threats to school safety in Gauteng.
Simultaneously, 1000 learners, educators and members of School Governing Bodies (SGBs) from 165 schools were trained in establishing a School Safety Plan and support systems. The schools chosen for the initial roll-out had been flagged as experiencing notable challenges in relation to school safety. Following the training, each school established a School Safety Team consisting of learners, educators and representatives of the SGBs who are responsible for assisting the school as a whole to develop a practical School Safety Plan.
During this financial year the Department will continue to assist the schools that have already started with the programme while also rolling out the programme to an additional 165 schools and train a further 1000 school safety activists.
The Youth Safety Programme
The Department also runs programmes to encourage young people who are no longer at school to be part of community safety initiatives. Youth safety and development projects are run from specially established Youth Desks at various police stations. Currently, there are 70 Youth Desks throughout the province that serve as access and coordination structures for youth involvement in community crime prevention initiatives.
During 2007/08 the Department supported the establishment of 27 new youth desks and trained over 500 young people in developmental Social Crime Prevention, the objectives of the Gauteng Safety Strategy and how to run an effective youth desk. A further 100 young people were trained in Youth Mentorship which included modules on leadership, project management and building network relations with a special emphasis on working with Local Government.
The Youth Desks are involved in a wide range of activities that include educating young people on the dangers associated with drug and alcohol abuse, assisting with school safety initiatives, and helping residents living in informal settlements with painting numbers on their houses. The latter activity can enable the police and other service providers to quickly find a specific residence if assistance is required.
To encourage more young people to participate in projects run by Youth Desks, a promotional multimedia DVD was developed. The DVD explains the benefits of the Youth Desk projects for young people and their communities. The DVD can also be used as part of the Youth Desk training programme and was launched during Youth Month in June 2008.
During the past financial year the Department, in partnership with the SAPS, the Provincial Community Policing Board and the Gauteng Youth Commission established a Provincial Youth Desk Leadership structure. This structure consists of young leaders as chosen by their peers and will assist Youth Desks in designing and developing their programmes. They will also engage with the Intergovernmental Youth Forum to garner further government training and resources for their programmes. The Provincial Youth Desk Leadership structure will be unveiled at the Youth Safety Imbizo that will be held during Youth Month.
In the 2008/09 financial year the Department will focus on building the brand of the Youth Desks so that the programme is better known throughout the province. Furthermore, the department will establish an additional Youth Desks at ten police stations bringing the total up to 80 desks. Ongoing training and support will be provided to 100 Youth Desk participants. The Department will also roll-out a provincial campaign to prevent violence and reduce drug and alcohol abuse by young people.
Strategic Pillar 4: Strengthening the institutional arrangements of government in Gauteng to better understand and respond to crime.
The Premier's vision of Gauteng as a global-city region emphasises the importance of establishing holistic governance as a way of addressing cross-cutting challenges such as crime. It is for this reason that the Gauteng Safety Strategy pays attention to capacitating and organising government in Gauteng to allow for an improved understanding and therefore collective response to the province's crime challenge.
For some time now there have been a large number of anti-crime initiatives being undertaken by various government departments at the provincial and local tiers. However, as coordination amongst different agencies has been inadequate, the collective impact of these initiatives has been minimal. The Department has therefore proactively sought to work more closely with other Provincial Departments and Local Government. As is apparent throughout this speech, much of the Departments work has been undertaken in partnership with other Provincial Departments and Local Governments in Gauteng.
The Gauteng Intergovernmental Coordinating Committee
To promote better cross-governmental coordination and alignment of crime reduction initiatives, The Gauteng Intergovernmental Safety Coordinating Committee (GISCC) was established in 2006. Chaired by the MEC for Community Safety, the committee consists of the Executive Members of each of the Local Government Mayoral Committees (MMC) responsible for public safety. The GISCC is supported by a Technical Committee chaired by the Head of the Gauteng Department of Community Safety and consists of senior government officials from Provincial and Local Governments.
During the previous financial year the GISCC met to jointly plan and allocate budgets to projects for the current financial year. This is the first time that an intergovernmental collective planning and budgeting process in relation to crime prevention has been undertaken in the province. The GISCC will continue to meet in the current financial year to develop its approach to joint planning for local level safety and to monitor the implementation of the current action plans.
Supporting Local Government Safety Initiatives
The Department is of the view that Local Governments have a very important role to play to improve community safety. Most of the initiatives highlighted in the section on the Strategic Pillar to Promote Social Crime Prevention therefore involve partnerships with Local Governments in Gauteng.
In addition to the initiatives already mentioned, the Department has developed the Gauteng Social Crime Prevention Framework which is aimed at providing a more structured process of multi-agency collaboration at strategic and operational levels. To support the framework, the Department also developed a set of guidelines to assist Local Governments and their partners to incorporate comprehensive Safety Plans in their Integrated Development Plans. Training for Local Government officials on the use of these guidelines will commence in this financial year.
The Department will also implement a local network capacity development programme. This programme will assist Local Authorities in establishing four Community Safety Forums in the current financial year. These forums will coordinate local safety efforts and improve the accountability of governance service units supporting such efforts.
Furthermore, the Department will provide training courses aimed at assisting Local Authorities to improve their application of Crime Prevention through Environmental Design (CEPTED), principles to city planning and development projects. CEPTED principles assist developers and architects to understand how certain designs and layouts (e.g. of buildings, housing developments, commercial districts, shopping centres, etc) can reduce the risks of crime being committed.
Gauteng Traffic Management Services - R210 891 000
As a result of the department's broader mandate, which includes monitoring of compliance and adherence to traffic legislation and road public transport legislation, this unit is at the forefront of implementing the Gauteng Road Safety Strategy adopted by the Provincial Executive in 2006. At the core of this strategy is the reduction of road fatalities by 30% in 2009 through improving road safety throughout the province.
The five key areas of the Gauteng Road Safety Strategy include:
These five key focus areas cut across nine objectives of the strategy. The implementation of the nine strategic objectives is outlined below:
1. The Road Environment
There are certain locations where vehicle and pedestrian accidents happen more frequently than at other locations. This is usually as a result of certain risk factors in the road environment that contribute to a higher chance of an accident occurring. In an effort to systematically improve the road environment throughout the province, the department undertook the following activities in the previous financial year:
Identification of hazardous locations
Using statistics on vehicle and pedestrian accidents, the Department identified the hazardous locations along the following roads: Diepsloot N14, the Golden Highway, Barry Marais Road, Moloto Road, Geba Road (Kagiso), Old Potchefstroom Road, Olievenhoutsbosch, Rivonia Road, R59 Sybrand van Niekerk, Soweto Highway, Paul Kruger (East Rand), Bapsfontein R25, Hans Strydom, and the R101 Bonaccord.
In order to reduce the danger to vehicles and pedestrians using these roads, the department implemented a number of interventions such as roadside checkpoints, K78 roadblocks, speed law enforcement, moving violations law enforcement, pedestrian management law enforcement, drivers fitness law enforcement, visible patrols and roadblocks targeting drinking and driving.
In addition, the Department's Traffic Management division conducted a number of joint operations with other government agencies such as the Mpumalanga Provincial Traffic, the Dinokeng tsa Taemane Municipality, the Tshwane Metropolitan Police Department, Gauteng Emergency Services, the Department of Public Transport, Road and Works, and the South African Police Service (with a focus on taxi violence operations).
The above interventions have proven to be effective in reducing road accidents and fatalities. For example, following interventions the number of serious accidents on Moloto Road (R573) reduced by 47%.
Road safety audits
In order to identify the specific environmental risk factors that can contribute to vehicle accidents, the Department undertakes Road Safety Audits at identified hazardous locations. For example, these audits will reveal problems with visibility at intersections due to obstructions such as long grass, defaced road signs, faded road markings, deteriorating road surfaces or inappropriately high speed limits given the road condition. The results of the audits are then used to guide specific interventions to improve the road environment so as to improve vehicle and pedestrian safety.
Road safety audits will continue in the 2008/09 financial year in identified hazardous locations. This is in line with the objective to improve road safety environment and thus contribute to reduced fatalities in the province.
Central Accident Capturing Unit (CACU).
During the last financial year the Central Accident Capturing Unit (CACU) was established. This unit will play an important role in the current financial year in assisting road law-enforcement agencies throughout Gauteng to identify a greater number of hazardous locations more quickly than was the case in the past. Previously, each agency independently collected data on traffic accidents in their jurisdiction. This meant that there was no system for gathering up to date statistics on the number of accidents and analysing where they were occurring.
With the establishment of CACU, there is now a real-time centralised data base that can be used by all road law-enforcement agencies to identify problematic locations immediately. This will assist in the timely deployment of traffic officials and other road safety interventions at emerging accident 'hot-spots'. Furthermore, we will be in a position to quickly evaluate the impact of our interventions by monitoring whether or not the numbers of accidents rate has significantly decreased. The unit will be fully staffed and operational in the current financial year.
2. The Road User
Increasing the levels of adherence to the rules of the road is an intrinsic part of the Gauteng Road Safety Strategy. Law enforcement officers are vital for the accomplishment of this objective. In the previous financial year, there were 532 Provincial Traffic Officers available to enforce road laws on the provincial roads throughout the Gauteng. They charged 727 pedestrians for road violations and 180 people for driving under the influence of alcohol.
To further bolster our traffic law enforcement capacity in the current 2008/09 financial year, an additional 137 law enforcement officers will be recruited. Of these, 60 are already at the Training College, with 57 undergoing practical training at regional offices. Another 20 posts will be advertised and filled in the third quarter of the current financial year.
Cooperation with other law enforcement agencies will be strengthened through the Traffic Management Gauteng (TMG) coordinating committee. The alignment of operations with those of the Road Traffic Management Cooperation (RTMC) to encourage the integration of state resources in Gauteng will be given prominence.
Some of the key initiatives to be undertaken in 2008/09 financial year include:
3. The Vehicle
Removing unroadworthy vehicles from our roads is one of the cornerstones of reducing road fatalities on our roads. To this end, various law enforcement interventions were conducted in the last financial year targeting the fitness of light passenger and freight vehicles. This included the holding of 238 roadblocks which contributed to a total of 1 966 unroadworthy vehicles being taken off our roads. In order to continue removing unroadworthy vehicles off our roads, The Provincial Traffic Management have planned to hold 111 roadblocks during the current financial year. Additional roadblocks will be undertaken in joint operations with the SAPS and Metropolitan Police Departments, and other Local Authority Traffic agencies.
Furthermore, to ensure that all vehicles on our roads are roadworthy the Department is involved in tackling corruption in Vehicle Testing Stations. Inspections are regularly done on Vehicle Testing Stations and during the last financial year, a number of private stations that were found to be involved in fraudulent issuing roadworthy certificates were shut-down.
4. The Institutional Arrangements
The implementation of any comprehensive strategy requires dedicated institutional support and capacity. During the previous financial year a number of initiatives were undertaken to strengthen the institutional arrangements in Gauteng to support the implementation of the Gauteng Road Safety Strategy.
The Department revised the Traffic Management Gauteng (TMG) structure to provide greater institutional support for the Gauteng Road Safety Strategy. This structure coordinates the activities of all Traffic Law Enforcement Agencies in Gauteng. Other supporting agencies such as the SAPS, Emergency Services and the Department of Public Transport, Roads and Works are also represented on this structure. This entailed aligning the strategic objectives of TMG with the Road Safety Plan and establishing various sub-committees Chaired by Local Authorities.
In order to bolster our law enforcement priority interventions, the department established the following specialised law enforcement units: the Special Law Enforcement Unit, Freeway Patrol Unit and High Speed Unit. To ensure that the members of these units were adequately capacitated for the demands that they would face, additional enforcement personnel participated in the Traffic Management learnership programme.
5. Law Enforcement and Adjudication
Progress in the enforcement and adjudication of traffic laws has been made as a result of the key initiatives that the department, in conjunction with other law enforcement agencies, embarked upon in the previous financial year. The intensification of law enforcement has also been used to prevent and limit taxi violence.
Many accidents may not have occurred or may not have been fatal if the drivers were not traveling with excessive speed. It is for this reason that the Department has purchased new equipment to identify people who drive recklessly fast. The establishment of a High Speed Unit resulted in the arrest of 107 offenders and while18 842 motorists were fined for excessive speeding.
The damage done to our roads by overloaded freight vehicles contribute to the risk factors for vehicle accidents and fatalities. For this reason the department developed an Overloading Strategy. The strategy identified five key entrance and exit points in Gauteng where overloading control centre's will be established. Currently two are in existence and a further three will be built. The purpose of the strategy is to ensure that overloaded vehicles do not enter or leave the borders of Gauteng.
The free flow of traffic is another significant factor that can have an impact on accidents. During traffic congestion some drivers become highly agitated and aggressive which can result in such drivers taking unnecessary risks. In an attempt to improve the free flow of traffic on provincial roads, the department deployed points-men with special focus on freeways during peak-hour traffic.
Other initiatives planned for 2008/9 financial year include:
6. Eliminating Fraud and Corruption
As in previous years, stamping out fraud and corruption remain a top priority for the department. During the 2007/8 financial year, the department conducted various investigations into allegations of fraud, corruption and non-compliance with the provisions of the National Road Traffic Act at Vehicle Testing Stations (VTS) and Drivers License Testing Centres (DLTS) in Gauteng. Further details of the Departments focus on reducing fraud and corruption can be found in the next section of this document.
7. Verified Information and Intelligence
In order to effectively reduce road fatalities, it is necessary to have specific data and information about the risk factors and causes. The Department has therefore paid a great deal of attention to ensuring that it strengthens its data and information capturing and analysis systems. Chief amongst these is the establishment of the Centralised Accident Capturing Unit (CACU) aimed at the provision of accurate accident data for the province.
In addition the Department has established a Traffic Statistics Model (TrafStat) to analyse the data captured by the unit. This model will enable us to identify the causal factors of many accidents including crucial information such as time frames, vehicle types and user categories. To ensure that all these initiatives continue to yield positive results, the permanent employment of CACU personnel is underway and the TrafStat model will be piloted fully in this financial year.
8. Qualitative Internal and External Communication
Communication is one of the most critical components of the Gauteng Road Safety Strategy. As a result communications strategy aimed at supporting the implementation of this strategy was finalised and implementation commenced in 2007/08.
Media partners such as Lesedi FM, Jozi FM and YFM have been brought on board. It is through such platforms that the department has been able to prove regular traffic reports and road safety tips daily. The department is continuing with its engagement of other media houses as so that the public can also have the advantage of our real-time central accident capturing capacity to warn them about hazardous locations and traffic accidents.
9. Public Education
As part of public education interventions aimed at ensuring that road users are knowledgeable about the rules of the roads, a number of interventions were implemented in the past financial year.
The department introduced an industrial theatre performance in all regions, with special focus on the identified 20 priority townships, as part of educating road users on safe road usage. Road safety education projects and programmes targeted at all road users will be conducted in all five regions during the current financial year.
A key concern of the Department is to improve community safety through reducing taxi related conflict. A number of initiatives were therefore taken in the previous financial year to achieve this objective.
A taxi summit was held with operators and association leaders with a view to obtain their buy-in and support for Road Safety Plan and Strategy. During this financial year, the department also developed and implemented the Taxi Management Protocol Plan to assist in the management of inter-provincial conflicts between bus and taxi operators. Mediation of conflicts in newly developed areas such as Greenstone, Maponya and Jabulani Malls are examples of conflict reduction interventions by the department. The establishment of a Public Transport Conflict Monitoring Unit, that will identify early-warning signals on public transport conflicts, is one of the planned activities for 2008/9 financial year.
Another initiative planned for this financial year is the establishment of a joint task team comprising of all law enforcement agencies with specialised skills on tactical and crowd management. This task team will be deployed during public transport conflict situations.
Gauteng Department of Community Safety
Corporate Governance, Planning and Capacity Development
Corporate Support Services - R30, 141, 000
During the financial year 2007/08 the Department, in cooperation with the Gauteng Department of Public Transport, Roads and Works, SAPS, Special Investigating Unit, National Inspectorate of Testing Stations and the National Department of Transport, conducted various investigations into allegations of fraud, corruption and non compliance with the provisions of the National Road Traffic Act at Vehicle Testing Stations and Drivers License Testing Centres in Gauteng.
As a result of these investigations, the registration of the Drews Vehicle Testing Station, Martindale Vehicle Testing Station and the Montana Vehicle Testing Station were cancelled. Notice of the intention to deregister the AA test and Drive Vehicle Testing Station in Pretoria was also given and the Department is currently awaiting a response from the AA in this regard.
The investigations further resulted in the arrest of 72 people on charges of fraud and corruption. To date six have already received sentences ranging between R 8000 and 18 months imprisonment. The other matters are still in court.
The Department further deregistered 15 Examiners of Vehicles for failing to comply with the provisions of the National Road Traffic Act as far as it relates to the roadworthy inspection of vehicles. As a result of vehicles receiving roadworthy certificates contrary to the provisions of the National Road Traffic Act, the Department is in the process of recalling vehicles for retesting at government managed Vehicle Testing Stations. To date 2 253 vehicles are being recalled as a result of receiving roadworthy certificates irregularly. The Department is currently finalising recommendations to cancel the registration of a further two Vehicle Testing Stations. Investigations are continuing and more Vehicle Testing Stations will be deregistered as we complete the investigations.
During the 2008/9 financial year further emphasis will be placed on learners and drivers licenses. Audits conducted by the Department in the previous year resulted in the cancellation of 141 drivers licenses which were issued contrary to the provisions of the National Road Traffic Act.
The Department is also in the process of investigating a large number of Taxi Operating Permits that were allegedly issued fraudulently. The Mpumalanga Provincial Government confiscated a number of these fraudulent Taxi Permits and handed them over to the Department for investigation.
In order to proactively deal with fraud and corruption, the Department established a Working Group under Traffic Management Gauteng to investigate and improve business processes at VTS and DLTC's. This will include amendments to the Provincial Road Traffic Act in order to strengthen controls and to improve service delivery. It is the aim of the Department to introduce new controls and business processes supported by a unified code of conduct and a disciplinary code. Together with the National Independent Testing Station Association (NITSA) and TUV Germany, the Department is investigating the introduction of technology and expertise to improve the quality of training of Examiners of Vehicles as well as the quality of testing of motor vehicles.
During the 2008/9 financial year, the VTS and DLTC's will continue to be subjected to compliance audits and investigations.
The Human Resources Directorate Learnership and Internship Programme
The Department exceeded the provincial target of 9.5% of each Departments staff intake being part of a leadership or internship programme by achieving 11.5% in the 2007/08 financial year. A total of 193 youth have been appointed on the Learnership/Internship programme with 106 being appointed on the Traffic Learnership; of which 60 were female and 46 were male. The remaining 87 were appointed as interns in different units in the department, of which 41 were female and 8 were males.
A total of 58 traffic learners were appointed on permanent basis in January 2008 after completing the Learnership programme. This is seen as positive contribution towards the development and employment of youth and the reduction of poverty.
Development and employment of women in the department
In an effort by the department to accelerate the development of women in Traffic Management, 19 women from level 8 to 10 attended the Emerging Management Development Programme provided by South African Management Development Institute. This was supported by women in Traffic who were performing administrative duties being taken to the field.
A total of eight female managers were registered for the Executive Development Programme at UNISA which is aimed at developing their leadership skills and strategic capability. Indications are that the Executive Development team is progressing very well. Women constitute 60% of the Departments senior management team.
Conclusion
Premier, Honourable Speaker and Honourable members, in conclusion I would like to reiterate our call to all of us who live in Gauteng to "Take Charge" and become a part of reducing crime and making Gauteng a safe and secure Province.
I would like to take this opportunity to request you to join me in thanking the Gauteng South African Police Service Provincial Commissioner and all his police members for their tireless efforts. I want to assure you that your hard work has not gone unnoticed.
I would also like to thank the committed members of our Community Policing Forums, the Patrollers and the many hundreds of other volunteers that are working to make their communities safer places. I would also like to thank the Head of Department and all the hard working members of my Department who have demonstrated their commitment to implementing the Gauteng Safety Strategy and the Gauteng Road Safety Strategies. Indications are that you are making a difference and if we sustain our efforts we will achieve our vision of a safe and secure Gauteng.
Together, we will succeed!