Cape Town – We have more drug houses than schools in the Western Cape and authorities have warned that an aggressive approach is needed.
The fourth quarter crime statistics showed that the Western Cape has 1 819 known drug houses with 37 linked to organised crime.
During parliamentary question and answer session, police revealed there were 1 819 known drug houses in the Western Cape, with 1 077 of these located in the Cape Town Metro, and 742 in rural areas.
The Western Cape Education Department has 1 449 schools.
Gillion Bosman, Western Cape spokesperson for Community Safety, said drug houses formed a critical component of the production and distribution networks maintained by illicit narcotic peddlers. This was deeply concerning.
“The updated figures represent an increase (in drug houses) of more than 15% compared to similar numbers received by the DA in June 2021,” Bosman explained.
“At that time, 1 577 drug houses were known to operate in the Western Cape, with 53% of those located in the Cape Town Metro.
“The Western Cape Police Ombudsman set out on an investigation into the matter and are awaiting the findings.
“The negative effects of the illicit drug trade are well-known.
“Drugs tear apart families and communities, and ensnare too many of our people in the bonds of addiction.
“Crucially, they provide the most important and vital source of income for gangs, thus driving incessant and constant violence.
“It is unacceptable that drug houses continue to proliferate throughout our province, where they spread their poison into our communities.
“It is abundantly clear that shutting down drug houses will not only end their stranglehold on our communities, but will also deprive gangsters of their income.”
Western Cape MEC for Police Oversight and Community Safety, Reagen Allen, said the numbers were alarming and outnumbered some state buildings.
“The increase in the number of what are deemed, known drug houses is deeply alarming. Previously this number stood at 1 557, but this has escalated to 1 819,” he said.
“This reflects that in our province we have more ‘known’ drug houses than public schools.”
Allen encouraged the public to be the ears and eyes of the police and sent a warning out to those occupying these homes.
“We want to believe that since placing a spotlight on drug houses in the Western Cape, more residents have been coming forward to report where these houses are.
“I urge the police and all law enforcement agencies to be proactive in shutting these houses down and arresting those who are guilty of participating in these illicit trades.
“Those living in houses that are the property of the State should be evicted, as the housing opportunities were afforded to ensure those in need of a housing opportunity can live in dignity and not engage in illegal activities.
“We must be aggressive and unapologetic in combating this crime, as they are directly linked to gangsterism, organised crime and various other crimes.”
With the issue of drug houses, law enforcement confirmed the growing epidemic having received close to 500 complaints of rental stock being used to commit these crimes.
Inspector Wayne Dyason said the City had a dedicated Housing Safety Unit, focusing on City rental stock, in support of the Human Settlements Directorate.
“Between January and March this year, the unit investigated 436 complaints of illegal activities at rental stock units,” he stated.
The City of Cape Town told Weekend Argus it took allegations of drug dealing and gangsterism in its rental stock seriously. It always follows the legal processes to evict any person who occupies a community residential unit.
“These type of allegations are often made and the City encourages complainants to provide details.
“The details required include names and addresses to allow for investigations and for the necessary action to be taken,” they said.
Police spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Malcom Pojie, said ongoing operations and information received from the community was vital in making arrests.
“Weekly multidisciplinary, high density integrated operations, have become a norm in the Western Cape with maximum deployment of integrated forces and force-multipliers to hotspots in the province,” he said.
“Some successes are based on information received from the community, while other against drug-related crime are achieved through intelligence-driven interventions from police.”