MCHUNU APPLAUDED AS CRIME STATS RELEASED

Mon 25 November 2024:

Police minister Senzo Mchunu has been applauded for work done in the police ministry since taking office this year. He presented crime statistics for the second quarter on Monday.

Presenting the latest data, the minister revealed the murder rate declined by 5.8%, sexual offences by 2.5% and robbery with aggravating circumstances by 8.8%.

“Through targeted operations, strategic deployments and enhanced policy tactics, achieved a number of successes in the fight against crime,” he said.

He also noted successes in dealing with illegal miners.

Speaking to Newzroom Afrika ahead of the announcement, Institute for Security Studies (ISS) researcher, Willem Els said there was “a new dynamic within the police” and that Mchunu was “more hands on”.

Importantly, he said, there seemed to be a better understanding of the minister’s role as political head and not operational head. The latter is assigned to the police commissioner.

“That is a good thing, because in recent years we saw that those lines were blind and that led to the deterioration in the crime stats. The minister is focusing on guidance, but also on a policy level,” he said.

Some positive results notwithstanding, police recorded a 2.2% increase in attempted murder, a 1% increase in assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm, and a staggering 18.5% increase in commercial crime.