By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Gauteng Provincial Government is introducing the ward-based policing through the recruitment of Crime Prevention Wardens, as part of government’s plan to fight crime in the province.
This comes after Premier Panyaza Lesufi pronounced in his State of the Province Address that fighting crime is an apex priority.
The premier says only 4000 Crime Prevention Wardens will be graduating on Sunday following a three-month intensive training programme.
Lesufi briefed the media on the state of readiness for the pass-out parade of the newly recruited warders at the Gautrain Management Agency in Midrand on Friday.
The parade is set to take place on Sunday in Soshanguve, City of Tshwane.
Lesufi says the recruitment drive attracted 21 000 applications from across the five regions.
10 650 applicants were shortlisted for the next stage and only 6 000 candidates made it to the training stage.
However, only 4000 will be graduating.
Lesufi says some candidates fell off during verification processes due to criminal records, unverified matric certificates, and a lack of physical fitness.
He says the newly recruited force will be patrolling the streets of Gauteng, working together with the police to fight crime,starting from Monday, May 1.
“These Crime Prevention Wardens (CPWs) will strengthen the existing law enforcement officials in the fight against crime at the ward level. They will use e-Policing solutions such as drones and helicopters to eliminate criminal elements in the various Gauteng communities,” says Lesufi.
“Their deployment in hotspot areas forms part of targeted crime prevention operations to deter and detect criminal activities and squeeze the space for criminals to operate. These interventions contribute to the reduction of serious crimes.”
Unlike the Community Policy Forums (CPFs) which operate on a volunteer basis, wardens will be paid a salary and are armed with “registered tools” to deal with any situation.
Their duties include crime prevention, stop-and-search, arrests, attending to complaints, maintaining law and order, and traffic control.
Lesufi says he hopes the new cohort will help prevent crime and lawlessness in the province and attract investors.
“They will also form partnerships with schools across the province to address criminal elements in and outside the premises of learning and provide the necessary support and timely response to crime incidents.”
He says the next step is to connect suburbs, townships, businesses, schools, and other public places with hi-tech face and car recognition CCTVs.
The Gauteng government’s declaration of war on crime comes against the backdrop of the province dominating the country in the number of reported serious crimes, including murder and sexual offences, in the third quarter crime statistics for the fiscal year 2022-2023.
At least 11 Gauteng districts were among the top 30 with high rates of serious crimes, according to Police Minister Bheki Cele. The 11 districts are Johannesburg Central, Kempton Park, Honeydew, Midrand, Tembisa, Randfontein, Alexandra, Brooklyn, Pretoria Central, Roodepoort and Temba.