CAPE TOWN – This week the Western Cape Safety Advisory Committee met with Provincial Minister of Police Oversight and Community Safety Anroux Marais to discuss key issues, one of them the deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to the Cape Flats.
It will be deployed to the Cape Flats in the near future to help fight gang violence and criminal syndicates, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced at the State of the Nation Address on Thursday last week.
The Safety Advisory Committee provides strategic advice, recommendations on policies, budgets and legislation to the provincial minister, with the aim of improving safety and crime prevention strategies, the department said in a statement this week.
Key deliberations during the meeting held on Tuesday 17 February centred on the deployment of the SANDF to the Western Cape, to support the police in addressing the high levels of violent crime, particularly gang-related murders, the department said.
It said that committee members provided strategic input on how such deployment can be optimally coordinated to disrupt and dismantle organised crime syndicates, while ensuring measurable impact and enhanced community safety.
The committee also discussed practical ways in which the provincial government can support the police in capacitating and resourcing its detective services.
The Safety Advisory Committee is a highly valued strategic partner in shaping our safety agenda, Marais said.
She said: “The independent expertise and constructive insight provided by its members, strengthen our resolve and refine our approach. By drawing on this collective experience we are better positioned to implement focused, data-driven interventions that advance our shared goal of building a safer Western Cape for all.”
