Delays in the repair and maintenance of police vehicles continue to undermine policing in Postmasburg and across the Northern Cape. This was confirmed yesterday during a follow-up oversight inspection at the Postmasburg SAPS station to assess its vehicle fleet.
The inspection comes amid a significant increase in crime in Postmasburg. Once regarded as a relatively crime-free mining hub, the town is now grappling with hijackings, housebreakings and vehicle theft. SAPS are also investigating the deaths of two men who were stabbed outside a local tavern in Newtown last month. The lack of visible policing is creating an environment increasingly conducive to crime.
Of the seven vehicles allocated to the station, only four are operational. Two are assigned to detectives, leaving just two for visible policing. A further two have been boarded, while three are awaiting repairs in Upington. Two of these have been standing in the auxiliary garage for four months, gathering dust.
This is no improvement on 2024, when my oversight inspection found that only four of the station’s eight vehicles were mobile.
This is particularly concerning given Police Minister Firoz Cachalia’s recent admission in the NCOP that his department adopted a fleet management strategy in June, as well as government’s move to an alternative state contract for vehicle repairs.
We cannot afford further delays. Police need functioning vehicles to patrol communities, respond to calls and bring criminals to justice.
Following an August question-and-answer session in which Minister Cachalia admitted that he had not yet seen the department’s fleet management plan, I requested that the plan be presented to the Select Committee on Security and Justice in the next quarter. I have received a favourable response.
The DA will continue to fight for the swift repair and maintenance of SAPS vehicles in the Northern Cape. We need more SAPS vehicles on the roads, and more police officers visible in our communities, to catch and convict criminals, and make our communities safer.