"The Cape Flats is a crime scene,” said Michael Jacobs, chairperson of the Lentegeur Community Police Forum (CPF).
His comments came during the Western Cape Ministerial Programme’s stakeholder engagement at Mitchell’s Plain police station on Tuesday, September 9.
The meeting was facilitated by Deputy Minister of Police Dr Seipati Penelope Boshielo, along with acting Minister of Police Firoz Cachalia, community leaders, SAPS management, and government officials, to address the escalating safety and security crisis across the Cape Flats.
Mr Jacobs spoke on several concerns affecting the area. “Sector policing is out the window. We are struggling with vehicles, and in some cases, we have none. Without resources, the link between the police and the community is broken. We cannot just blame the station commander when they don’t have the tools to do their job,” he said.
“I am disappointed in the provincial commissioner. You said on TV there were only a few incidents, but every day, people are dying in Mitchell’s Plain. You cannot run a station with fewer members than the population it must serve, and you cannot keep taking members from one station to cover another,” he said.
Mr Jacobs also raised concerns about the justice system. “How can someone get R500 bail for a shooting while shoplifters sit three months in Pollsmoor (prison)?
Youngsters caught with drugs reoffend because they are not sent to proper programmes. Schools have become recruitment hubs for gangs, yet we have only one social worker for more than 75 schools in this precinct,” he said.
Mr Cachalia also said South Africa is “behind the curve” in confronting organised crime and gang violence.
He said intelligence-driven operations and stabilisation efforts are critical.
Lieutenant General Thembisile Patekile, provincial commissioner of police in the Western Cape, presented a plan, but Mr Cachalia said it is not yet implemented or resourced.
“I want a full resourcing plan from 13 stations within two weeks, and I will return with feedback,” he said. “Gangs are evolving into organised crime. They are becoming wealthy, well-resourced, and capable of recruiting young people with money, R2 500, that far exceeds normal employment. We need a serious, coordinated plan to go on the offensive against these mafias.”
Western Cape MEC Anroux Marais said the Mitchell’s Plain Safety and Development Plan was developed with residents and stakeholders to address socio-economic and environmental drivers of gangsterism.
“A Safety and Development Forum will oversee implementation to ensure accountability,” she said, ("Mitchell’s Plain Safety and Development Forum to be formed with community-led criteria" Plainsman September 10; "Mitchell’s Plain safety plan moves forward with community input" Plainsman August 27 and "Stakeholders to refine Mitchell’s Plain safety plan ahead of budget deadline" Plainsman August 16).
Deputy director, safety promotion co-ordination for the Klipfontein Mitchell’s Plain sub-structure Department of Health and Wellness, Pauline Perez said the Violence Prevention Unit (VPU) leads the Integrated Violence Prevention pillar of the Provincial Strategic Plan 2025 to 2030.
“Through Area Based Teams and initiatives such as Planet Youth, which engages over 49 000 Grade 8 and 9 learners, we strengthen family relationships, reduce substance harms and foster positive youth behaviours,” she said, ("Planet Youth: A collaborative approach to tackling crime and supporting young people in the Western Cape" Plainsman July 24).
Abie Isaacs, chairperson of the Cape Flats Safety Forum, said the Cape Flats is under siege, “and the lack of a stabilisation plan has left policing stretched and ineffective. We have long called for SANDF deployment as a force multiplier while longer-term strategies are put in place.”
Pastor Leon Jacobs, founder of the Leon Jacobs Foundation, said modern gangs operate as businesses, paying young recruits up to R4 000 a month to sometimes secure territory and build dependence on illicit money.
“The church must be present. We are the last hope — offering safety, space, and guidance in these troubled times,” Pastor Jacobs said.