Even though the City’s law enforcement department has recorded a 30% increase in the number of arrests it has made over the past week, a civic group is concerned that not all the arrests translate to successful convictions.
The City said it arrested 363 suspects in the past week, and recorded 82,234 offences, compared to 283 arrests the previous week.
Mayco member for Safety and Security, JP Smith, said the City’s arrest rate had increased significantly in recent years, as the number of resources within Safety and Security had grown.
"And, even where the weekly arrest rate fluctuates, it is seldom due to the fact that fewer people are behaving badly, but more because our staff have had to deal with other priorities, which impact on their normal operations and patrols. These include assisting with any incidents of civil unrest, providing escort services to other City departments, being on duty at major events, and also dealing with the safety-related impacts of load-shedding," said Smith.
He said: "The list of priorities really is something to behold, and it is my hope that our public can appreciate the weight that falls on the shoulders of our uniformed services,’ said the City’s Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, JP Smith.
In the past week, the City’s Law Enforcement Department officers made 241 arrests for various offences and issued 426 notices for various transgressions.
But Action Society founder, Ian Cameron, said all the arrests mean nothing if there are no successful convictions, as the City’s law enforcement doesn’t have prosecution and investigation powers.
"In terms of visibility and resources, the City’s law enforcement is more effective, and they are doing a wonderful job than SAPS; however, the buck stops with the police, because once an arrest has been made, the City hands over the suspects to the police, which will further do investigations and ensure a successful conviction, but the chances of those suspects being successfully convicted are very low, because of the various challenges in the police system, such as limited resources and detectives. Arrests means nothing if there’s no successful conviction, " said Cameron.
Smith agreed with Cameron that the challenges in the SAPS make it very difficult for them to ensure successful convictions.
"In most cases, we will arrest these suspects, and after a day or two, they come back again to society, either because they are out on bail, or because the cases have been dismissed due to a lack of proper investigation. We have that challenge because there is a very low conviction rate across the country.
“ We have, however, met with the SAPS and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to discuss these challenges and the possibility of having provincial and local law enforcement have the powers to prosecute and investigate criminal cases," said Smith.