Cape Town - The selection of a new commissioner of police in crime-ridden Western Cape
has hit a fresh snag following accusations of political interference in the selection process.
This comes as President Cyril Ramaphosa has extended the deployment of the army in Cape Town at an extra cost of R64 million over the next six months.
He made the announcement before interviews for candidates were scheduled to take place.
Weekend Argus has learnt that Western Cape police boss Major-General Jeremy Vearey has been excluded from the final interview list even though he made the shortlist. This was allegedly because he had not submitted his qualifications with the application.
ANC provincial secretary Faiez Jacobs has called on Minister of Police Bheki Cele and national police commissioner General Khehla Sitole to urgently intervene in the “compromised process”.
MEC for Safety Albert Fritz was part of the short-listing process. Provincial principals will have the final say on who will be selected as commissioner - a position regarded as a poisoned chalice in a province marred by gang violence and the highest murder rate in the country.
Jacobs has charged that the decision to exclude Vearey was “sabotage”.
“I would not be surprised if this invisible hand is a DA-friendly one because that party has been campaigning maliciously to stop General Vearey from becoming our province’s most senior police officer,” he added
He described Vearey’s record as “second to none... a fearless crimebuster” and a respected lawman who commanded respect for his integrity and principles.
A source said individuals within the SAPS had been approached to apply.
They included a Major-General Beaton of the Blue Downs policing cluster, an Nyanga cluster commander and a Major-General Scheepers from Limpopo.
According to recent national crime statistics, police stations that fell under the Blue Downs and Nyanga clusters continued to record high levels of crime.
Jacobs demanded that the selection process start again.
Vearey declined to comment.
National police spokesperson
Brigadier Vishnu Naidoo said he
was not at liberty to communicate on “such processes”.
Meanwhile, Premier Alan Winde’s announcement of a R1 billion provincial safety plan to tackle crime came under fire from opposition parties this week.
Leader of the opposition in the provincial legislature, Cameron Dugmore wrote to the standing committee on premier and constitutional matters for an urgent debate on the plan.
He wants Winde to explain the plan, since certain issues appeared to be in conflict with the provisions of
the constitution. Dugmore accused Winde of “playing politics by attempting to create a provincial police service” which he described as “unlawful and unconstitutional”.
He warned “this path will only set back the fight against crime and violence in our province”.
Police crime statistics expert Dr Chris De Kock said politicians tended to seek point-scoring measures rather than addressing the core causes.
“It was the same DA that commissioned a commission of inquiry into Khayelitsha crime and violence. Yet it seems that it had not studied its own report or ignored the findings as it failed to implement the recommendations.”
He said had the recommendations been implemented, crime in the crime-ridden township would have decreased.
De Kock also lambasted the deployment of the army to the Cape Flats, saying this would send the wrong message to the international community and could affect tourism.
South African National Civic Organisation provincial chairperson Thando Dedezane accused Winde of wanting to take duties from the national government and make the Western Cape “a country on its own.
He said Winde should rather co-operate with the national government instead of running programmes parallel to existing ones.
The EFF has threatened Parliament with legal action unless the joint standing committee on intelligence is established soon. The opposition party gave Parliament until Friday to set up the committee.
It said the reason for the army deployment in Cape Town was a lack of intelligence and that this committee on intelligence was crucial to pick up any lapses. Additional Reporting ANA