Deputy President Paul Mashatile says an economy grappling with extortion, controlled by “ruthless gangsters”, poses a serious threat to both government and law-abiding citizens.
“We have also responded to a related question in the National Assembly, highlighting the urgent need for government to take decisive action to deal with extortion-related criminality,” Mashatile said on Thursday.
The Deputy President was responding to questions in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) relating to several critical issues impacting South Africa’s township and rural economies.
The Deputy President quoted Police Minister Senzo Mchunu, who in September spoke about township economic sabotage in four provinces. These provinces include mainly Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, the Western Cape and Eastern Cape.
“According to the Minister of Police, these provinces carry 73% of crime levels in South Africa. The gravity of these crimes alone, including extortion, are of serious concern to government, and must be dealt with immediately,” said Mashatile.
He announced that the South African Police Service (SAPS) has since initiated the signing of cooperative agreements with provincial and local governments, which include operational plans that will provide details on the integration of resources against crime.
In addition, Extortion and Kidnapping Task Force Forums have been established in all affected provinces, which involve all the relevant stakeholders, including private business.
On the implementation of measures to deal with sabotage of basic service delivery, such as water and sanitation, by “unscrupulous” owners of water tankers, the Deputy President said the Departments of Water and Sanitation and Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs have intervened.
According to the Deputy President, the two departments are assisting struggling municipalities with water tankers as a short-term intervention, while bulk water infrastructure challenges are being resolved.
“In addition to the challenge of construction mafia, which is rife all over the country, we have received reports of unscrupulous owners of water tankers, who are interfering with service delivery initiatives in municipalities, thus extorting money to rent their services, and some selling water to vulnerable communities.”
He stressed that the State was encouraged by the work of Community Policing Forums, whistleblowers and community members, who are actively involved in addressing service delivery-related acts of criminality and extortion across all provinces that have been identified as hotspots.
“However, much more needs to be done to resolve this challenge,” Mashatile said.
