Tuesday, November 5, 2024

FIRST WITH SECURITY NEWS

8594 vacancies at Detective Services a “big concern”

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The South African Police Service currently has a vacancy of 8594 within the Detective Services, which is a big concern due to South Africa’s high crime rate.

This is according to Rise Mzansi’s Makashule Gana, who sits on the Portfolio Committee on Police. He was commenting in response to a written parliamentary reply by Police Minister Senzo Mchunu, that the SA Police Service (SAPS) has a detective vacancy rate of just over 8500.

Gana noted “that there are 8594 vacancies that remain open for detectives should be a big concern for all of us considering that we’ve got a high crime rate in the country and that many cases go unsolved.” Earlier this year, former Police Minister Bheki Cele revealed that in the previous five years, 5.4 million case dockets were closed without result.

Gana further noted that the high case load is placing strain on detectives, saying “the detectives that are in the employ of the South African Police Service say they are overwhelmed by the number of cases that they have to attend to.”

The vacancies are set to increase, with Gana adding that “on average 50 detectives leave the employ of SAPS [annually], pursuing other opportunities, mostly in the private sector, which in itself is a big worry.”

Further detail on the vacancies indicates the highest number of vacancies is in KwaZulu-Natal, followed by the Western Cape and Eastern Cape, areas where Gana noted “are crime hotspots.”

Regarding possible solutions to address the vacancies, Gana called on SAPS leadership “to ensure there is a plan to fill these positions. There has to be a training plan, and there has to be a recruitment plan.”

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