Durban — KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli has vowed to address the real issue of community members who fear reporting crime as they are often victimised and sometimes worried that they might lose their lives.

Ntuli was speaking at a Community Imbizo and Service Delivery Monitoring Programme in Caluza, Pietermaritzburg, under the uMgungundlovu District Municipality, on Tuesday. The imbizo aimed at identifying practical solutions to enhance service delivery and address crime was attended by various MECs and the SAPS.

Ntuli urged communities to work with the police and the government in the fight against crime, saying this would foster stronger relationships between communities, the government, and law enforcement agencies.

Ntuli said that most criminal activities began with a community member being a witness and not reporting initially, and the police only arrived late on the scene due to late reporting.

The imbizo, he said, was part of ongoing efforts to combat criminality through heightened police intervention and ensure effective service delivery, and focused on strengthening community policing and improving access to quality basic services.

The engagement also focused on serious and violent crimes affecting these communities, as well as the police’s responses to them.

The Pietermaritzburg area has a high crime rate, with one of its police stations, Plessislaer SAPS, ranking high in the number of murder cases reported.

A resident raised her community’s concerns during the imbizo. | KZN Premier Media

Ward 21 resident Zanele Dlamini said she believed that her area had been neglected by the government as there was a load reduction issue from 5pm to 9pm and it had been an issue for four years.

Dlamini added that along with other residents from her area, they went to the City Hall to meet with Eskom and asked them if they could take two hours in the morning and two in the afternoon, but were unsuccessful.

She said that due to this, they experienced an increase in crime, especially women. She concluded that the current South African law favoured and protected criminals because even if they were arrested, they were most likely to be freed on bail and also get free legal aid.

Ntuli said most members of the public were fearful that should they report criminal activity, they would lose their lives, but assured residents that the issue would be addressed soon.

Ntuli emphasised that the provincial government was there for the people regardless of political affiliation. He urged the community to work together with the seventh administration and along with his government.

Residents raising their concerns. | KZN Premier Media

During the engagement, Ntuli praised provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi for doing an excellent job in eradicating crime in the province. He added that under Mkhwanazi’s watchful eye, bad apples in the police force had been arrested and prosecuted accordingly.

Ntuli said: “We work well with Mkhwanazi because he’s never said no and that he only reports to the national government. He understands that to be victorious against crime, it depends on a working relationship between us and the police.”

Ntuli spoke of a recent case of businesses hiring 163 people illegally instead of local residents and not providing locals with employment opportunities. Ntuli called for this trend to end in KZN so that locals are employed.

“As the KwaZulu-Natal government, the KZN people are our main priority. The people who are here legally and contribute legally to the economy, those are the people we cater for. The illegal occupants must return back to where they came from,” Ntuli said. He added that if they wanted to stay in the province, they needed legal documentation that warrants permission to stay

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