The latest crime statistics presented by Acting Minister of Police Firoz Cachalia raise serious concerns about accuracy, completeness and transparency, especially during the 16 Days of Activism Against Violence on Women and Children, Lisa Schickerling MP – DA Spokesperson on Police, said last week.

“While the DA notes a marginal decline in murders and attempted murders, the stark reality remains that violence affecting women and vulnerable groups is increasing and key information is missing,” she said in a statement.

Even though SAPS records crimes against children none were presented. Failing to release this data is a serious omission that prevents communities and Parliament from understanding the true scale of the crisis, according to the DA.

A major discrepancy appears between SAPS’ categories:
SAPS “contact sexual offences” category reports only 170 to 196 cases
SAPS rape statistics for the same period show 6 559 in Q1 and 7 204 in Q2

“This inconsistency raises a critical oversight question. If SAPS reports two different sets of figures for sexual violence, which data stream should the public trust?” Schickerling asked.

Small percentage drops hide extreme levels of daily violence

SAPS highlights a slight reduction in murder and attempted murder, but the real scale remains ‘severe’. During Q2 alone:

5 270 murders equals 58 murders per day, or 2.4 murders per hour
5 519 attempted murders equals 61 per day
7 204 rapes equals 78 rapes per day, or more than 3 every hour
32 854 cases of assault GBH equals 365 serious assaults per day, or 15 per hour
4 784 carjackings equals 52 per day

“This is not a picture of communities feeling safer. It is a country experiencing constant and severe violence,” Schickerling said.

High volume violence is increasing, not decreasing

SAPS’ own numbers show:
Rape increased by almost 10 percent
Assault GBH increased by 5.2 percent
Carjackings increased by 2.4 percent

“This means more people are being attacked, injured or sexually violated. A slight reduction in murder does not offset the escalating violence in categories that mainly affect women and children,” Schickerling said.

SAPS acknowledges massive underreporting but fails to reflect this in the public narrative

According to the Stats SA Governance, Public Safety and Justice Survey:
32.5 percent of assaults are not reported
42.4 percent of home robberies are not reported

These are exactly the categories that dominate contact crime totals, the DA pointed out.

“Given the data gaps, contradictions and omissions, how can South Africans trust any of SAPS’ reported GBV figures? Furthermore, what is the SAPS plan to fix the escalating levels of rape, assault and violence that women and children face every day?” Schickerling asked.

“If almost half of these contact crimes are never reported, the true scale of GBV and child violence is significantly worse than SAPS figures indicate. This is why the DA calls for accurate crime statistics. They show where the problems are, guide where resources should go and expose failures so that action can be taken. Omitting child crime from the records leaves communities blind and vulnerable. The DA deems this as a failure of transparency and accountability and a betrayal of the communities who are most at risk,” the party concluded.

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Together with DA Member of Parliament and Portfolio Committee Chairperson on Police, Ian Cameron MP, DA Mayoral Candidate Retief Odendaal MPL, and local councillors, the DA conducted oversight visits at the SAPS Anti-Gang Unit, Flying Squad, and K9 Unit in Gqeberha, said Yusuf Cassim MPL – DA Shadow MEC for Community Safety.

The findings were deeply troubling, Cassim reported. “Across all three units, a consistent picture has emerged. Critical policing capacity has collapsed due to years of mismanagement, bureaucratic paralysis, and neglect by national leadership.”

These failures directly undermine Parliament’s own directives, Cassim said. “In July 2025, the National Assembly adopted my petition for priority intervention in the Northern Areas’ gang crisis, following my submission to the Portfolio Committee on Police. The resolution specifically directed SAPS to address the collapse of the Anti-Gang Unit and Crime Intelligence in Nelson Mandela Bay.”

Considering the oversight visit’s findings, it is clear that those directives have been ignored, Cassim said. Residents of Nelson Mandela Bay, already facing some of the highest violent crime rates in the province, have been left “defenceless.”

The Anti-Gang Unit has only four operational vehicles for 110 visible policing personnel. Of the 29 detectives allocated to the unit, only eight are dedicated members, while the rest share duties across the organised crime unit. Detectives also face vehicle shortages, with just five operational units.

ShotSpotter and mobile surveillance systems, meant to aid in firearm and gang detection, have been non-operational for years.

The Flying Squad, once the city’s rapid-response lifeline, now operates with just one vehicle across the entire metro. The unit has also been without landlines since 2023 due to cable theft.

At the K9 Unit, staff have been cut from 40 to 22. There are only 13 dogs available, and only two of those are trained narcotics dogs, severely hampering the fight against substance abuse and gang-related drug crimes. There are also no high-performance vehicles left in service.

“These findings reflect a collapse in leadership and the erosion of essential public safety infrastructure. SAPS officers on the ground are doing their best under impossible conditions, but they are being failed by the very management tasked with supporting them,” Cassim said.

The Democratic Alliance has requested that Ian Cameron, in his capacity as Chairperson of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Police, table these findings before the Committee and demand urgent national interventions.

“We have also requested that he urgently follow up with the Minister of Police, Firoz Cachalia, on the status of implementation of the directives from the national portfolio committee and demand an immediate national response,” Cassim said.

“The people of Nelson Mandela Bay deserve a police service capable of protecting them, not one crippled by neglect and mismanagement. Until decisive action is taken, violent criminals will continue to act with impunity while honest officers fight an unwinnable battle,” he concluded.

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The DA demands that both the Western Cape Provincial Police Commissioner and the Minister of Correctional Services urgently appear before Parliament, said Nicholas Gotsell, DA NCOP Member on Security & Justice.

This incident comes on the back of the recent escapes at Wynberg and Strand Police holding cells. Those escapes occurred while detainees were in SAPS custody, whilst this escape happened inside a maximum-security correctional facility – the place where security is supposed to be at its strongest, he said.

Helderstroom is intended to house some of the most dangerous offenders in the country and it is tasked not only with detention, but with rehabilitation and the protection of the public. A breach at this level indicates a failure at the very heart of the Department of Correctional Services’ security and operational controls, according to the DA.

“When a prisoner serving a sentence for a serious crime walks out of a maximum-security facility, the public is justified in asking whether Correctional Services is capable of performing its constitutional mandate. The escape from a maximum security facility by a single inmate, points to a criminal justice chain that is failing at every stage; from arrest to court process to incarceration,” Gotsell said.

Last week, following the escapes from SAPS holding cells, the DA wrote to the Chairperson of the Select Committee on Security and Justice requesting the urgent appearance of both the Western Cape Provincial Police Commissioner and the Minister of Correctional Services to account for the repeated and escalating breakdowns occurring in both policing and correctional security environments. The DA has again written to the Chairperson to bring the latest incident to her attention and to request that the requested meeting be prioritised. Urgent and crucial interrogation is required.

Minister Pieter Groenewald must explain:

• How this escape was possible from inside a maximum security facility;

• Whether internal collusion is suspected or being investigated; and

• What immediate steps are being taken to prevent further breaches?

At a time when communities in the Western Cape are experiencing a surge of crime due to criminal justice failures, the State cannot allow violent, unrehabilitated offenders to return to the very communities they harmed, Gotsell concluded.

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This follows two previous written requests and two formal media statements by the DA calling on the Acting Minister to urgently release the data. Despite repeated promises, there has still been no clarity or accountability from the Ministry or SAPS on why the first quarter crime statistics have not been made public, Lisa Schickerling, DA Spokesperson on Police said on 30 October.

“We are now on the eve of the release of the second quarter crime statistics, yet the first quarter figures remain hidden from the public. This deliberate withholding of crime data is unacceptable and undermines transparency, accountability, and the public’s right to know the true state of safety in our country,” she said.

Crime statistics are not the property of the SAPS or the Minister, they belong to the people of South Africa. They are a critical tool for measuring performance, identifying crime trends, and ensuring that police resources are allocated where they are needed most.

The delay raises serious concerns about possible interference, dysfunction, or manipulation within SAPS management structures. It also highlights the ongoing leadership crisis in the Police Ministry, which continues to fail in its most basic mandate to keep South Africans safe and informed, Schickerling said.

The DA demands:

1. The immediate release of the first quarter crime statistics without any further delay or excuse;

2. A full and transparent explanation from the Acting Minister of Police on the reasons for the delay and those responsible; and

3. A firm commitment that all future quarterly crime statistics will be published on time and without political interference.

If the SAPS and the Acting Minister continue to withhold this information, the DA said it will pursue all available legal and parliamentary remedies to ensure accountability.

“South Africans have a right to the truth. Concealing crime data erodes public trust, weakens parliamentary oversight, and leaves communities in the dark at a time when violent crime continues to spiral out of control. The DA will not rest until transparency and accountability are restored within the South African Police Service,” Schickerling concluded.

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Janho Engelbrecht, DA Spokesperson on Correctional Services, said the two inmate deaths at Pollsmoor Correctional Centre “are a tragic yet predictable consequence of a facility and a regional management structure in complete crisis.”

“Our correctional facilities are severely overcrowded, with almost 60,000 remand detainees, and they are financially crippled by terrible budget planning, inflated unfit-for-purpose contracts, and misappropriated funds,” Engelbrecht said.

The DA therefore calls for a full scale, national spending review across the entire Correctional Service Department. The DA will write to Minister Dr Pieter Groenewald to ask him for the full spending review to take place without delay.

The review must account for the spending that is taking place to house tens of thousands of remand detainees, who are not yet convicted of crimes, because the Department of Justice has lost the capacity to speedily handle criminal trials, Engelbrecht continued.

“The incident at Pollsmoor thrusts it back into the spotlight for all the wrong reasons, mere weeks after the facility was embroiled in the scandal of two erroneous releases.”

This is not an isolated incident, the DA said. “It forms a devastating pattern of failure across the Western Cape Region, coming hot on the heels of similar events at the Oudtshoorn facility. The management at Pollsmoor, the Area and the Regional level have proven themselves to be fundamentally incapable of ensuring basic safety, security, and order. The DA will not stand by while this vital institution crumbles. South Africa cannot have a Correctional Service that allows inmates to be killed, or to escape, on a regular basis.”

The DA has also submitted urgent parliamentary questions to Groenewald, demanding a full and transparent account of the circumstances that led to these two deaths at Pollsmoor.

“We will intensify our oversight visits and use every parliamentary mechanism at our disposal to hold the executive and the department’s failing management to account. The blood of these inmates is on the hands of a negligent management structure and a national department that has abandoned its duty to protect both its citizens and those in its care,” Engelbrecht said.

The budget available to the Department of Correctional Services must be fully reviewed, without delay, so that all waste and all misappropriation can be immediately stopped, to spend on the fundamentals of safer and more secure prisons, Engelbrecht concluded.

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“The trend we are seeing is increasing gun crime, and little to no action from the Police. This cannot go on,” said Lisa Schickerling – DA Spokesperson on Police.

In separate incidents, mass shootings occurred in Phillipi in the Western Cape and Westbury in Gauteng, while several other shootings have occurred.

The DA now calls on Cachalia to urgently address this increasing crisis, and take meaningful steps to restore order and operational stability within SAPS.

“These tragedies come amid escalating instability within the South African Police Service (SAPS), instability that is now costing lives,” Schickerling said.

“While innocent South Africans are being gunned down in their homes and on their streets, the leadership of the SAPS remains consumed by internal battles, political interference, and leadership paralysis.

“The chaos in the command structure, the confusion over authority, and the collapse of crime intelligence have all left our police service rudderless and ineffective.”

South Africans deserve answers to the following questions, the DA said:

What emergency measures are being implemented to stabilise SAPS leadership and end the infighting that is crippling the service?
What concrete plans are in place to protect communities in high-risk areas like Westbury, Gugulethu, and the Cape Flats?
How will the Minister ensure accountability in SAPS management and command structures, given the ongoing leadership disputes?
South Africans cannot continue to live under siege while ministers “figure out a plan.”

Every day of inaction costs more lives, the DA said, adding it has repeatedly called for urgent reform of the SAPS, including depoliticising police leadership, expanding policing powers to capable local and provincial governments, and strengthening crime intelligence and detective services.

The DA has also set a deadline for the Ministers of Justice, Correctional Services, Police, and State Security to account for their departments’ joint failures in curbing the rise of impunity and present a combined plan to save the South African criminal justice system.

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The reasons for the destruction of criminal justice and the rule of law in South Africa are complex and go back decades but its disastrous effects are simple, and are experienced throughout the country, said Advocate Glynnis Breytenbach, DA Spokesperson on Justice and Constitutional Development.

“Many crimes and their perpetrators are not investigated due to infighting and corruption in the SAPS. As a result, our National Prosecuting Authority is struggling to put criminals behind bars efficiently. Our courts are so overburdened that cases take years to conclude,” she said.

“When convictions are secured, criminals are sent to overcrowded facilities where lawlessness reigns supreme. These same criminals are then released back into society, often too early, without being adequately (or at all) reformed. So the downward spiral continues.”

The DA believes it is therefore of crucial importance that the ministers in the security cluster act decisively to put a stop to this “vicious destructive cycle that strangles our communities.” The effects of crime and violence are felt especially in rural communities and low-income areas throughout our cities.

“We cannot grow the economy and create jobs while criminality cripples our towns and cities. The DA believes that solving the crisis of the South African criminal justice system is integral to creating a better life for all citizens,” Breytenbach said.

“It’s time for the responsible ministers to take responsibility and present a plan by 31 October 2025 to save South Africa and protect those who live in it. The DA will not relent in our pressure on the executive to do its job and put the safety of South Africans first,” the party concluded.

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This is according to the Democratic Alliance (DA), which said it has consequently tabled a Private Members Bill establishing a new Chapter 9 Institution in the form of the Office of the Cyber Commissioner.

While the response from the private sector and academia was overwhelmingly positive, the Bill’s reception in government and the public sector was predictably less positive, said Advocate Glynnis Breytenbach, DA Spokesperson on Justice and Constitutional Development.

Nevertheless, as the cyber-attacks on the country and our institutions increase daily, and the costs attached thereto continue to escalate, it remains a piece of legislation that requires serious consideration, Breytenbach said.

It appears from police statistics that they have only 544 cyber related fraud cases on their register, yet in excess of 100 000 cyber-attacks on banking accounts occurred in the 2024 year, according the SABRIC. This represents a loss of around R1.8 billion to individuals and represents an 86% increase in such attacks from the previous year.

“Clearly, there is a distinct problem in the fact that the SAPS have so few matters under investigation while the actual attacks have almost doubled. This again underlines the fact that we are in no position to deal effectively with the risk of cybercrime in South Africa. Our country is targeted precisely because of our inadequate structures set up to deal with this issue,” Breytenbach continued.

“The SAPS are underfunded, under-resourced and under trained. The Information Regulator is not adequately resourced nor equipped to deal with all these occurrences, and cyber criminals are having a field day.

“It is clear that some proactive steps must be taken urgently to revisit this issue, and we will continue to press ahead with this piece of legislation, designed to deal with cyber-crime, cyber-attacks and protocols in a more pro-active fashion,” Breytenbach concluded.

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The DA’s Glynnis Breytenbach has published proposals including both legislative and constitutional reforms, as well as new oversight mechanisms intended to reduce political interference and improve the prosecution of complex corruption cases. At the centre of the plan is the introduction of a new bill to establish an independent Anti-Corruption Commission, informally referred to as “Scorpions 2.0”, which would have the power to investigate and prosecute high-level corruption without influence from the executive.

“The justice system is not working for South Africans,” said Breytenbach in a statement. “The NPA’s consistent failure to deliver convictions in key corruption cases has eroded public confidence. We need real, systemic change.”

Key Elements of the Reform Package

The proposed measures include:

• Passing the “Scorpions 2.0” Bill: To create a constitutionally independent Anti-Corruption Commission with full investigatory and prosecutorial powers.

• Amending the Constitution: To transfer the power of appointing the National Director of Public Prosecutions from the President to Parliament, via a transparent and merit-based selection process.

• Implementing a “watching brief” system: To monitor high-profile cases, a model already used in the Western Cape to improve prosecution outcomes.

• Establishing a dedicated parliamentary subcommittee: Focused exclusively on overseeing the NPA’s performance.

• Calling for a performance audit of the NPA: To be conducted by the Auditor-General or the Public Service Commission.

• Improving recruitment, retention, and funding: With a particular focus on experienced prosecutors.

• Launching a student legal support pilot: Designed to relieve administrative burdens in the courts and accelerate the entry of young legal professionals into the justice system.

Citing Failures in Prosecution

The announcement follows a number of high-profile legal setbacks that have raised concerns about the NPA’s effectiveness. These include:

• The collapse of the Vrede Dairy project case and charges involving Zizi Kodwa, both of which failed to result in convictions.

• The bungling of the extradition request for Moroadi Cholota, a key figure in a state capture case involving former Free State Premier Ace Magashule, due to the use of the incorrect legal authority.

• The Timothy Omotoso trial, which was flagged in Parliament earlier this year as having suffered from numerous procedural errors that led to an acquittal.

In addition, Breytenbach pointed to the growing number of prosecutions being pursued by private organisations such as AfriForum, which it says reflects the NPA’s inability to fulfil its constitutional mandate.

“The fact that private institutions are increasingly stepping in to prosecute cases speaks volumes,” the statement read. “The public is left footing the bill for a prosecuting authority that no longer delivers justice.”

A Challenge to Parliament

The DA has called on MPs from all parties to back the reforms, warning that failure to act will entrench a culture of impunity.

“This is about more than institutional tinkering. These are practical, impactful reforms that will help restore public trust, hold the corrupt accountable, and strengthen the rule of law,” the party said. “Parliament must now decide whether it will support meaningful change or protect the status quo.”

Breytenbach maintains that the current state of the NPA is unsustainable and that urgent action is needed to prevent further collapse in the justice system. “The time to fix the NPA is now.”

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The draft regulations, currently under review, seek to impose strict limitations on private security firms, restricting access to essential equipment such as tasers, less-lethal options, and certain types of firearms. According to the DA, these changes would severely undermine the industry’s capacity to respond effectively to criminal threats.

“These regulations effectively mean that while criminals may be armed with high-powered weapons such as AK-47s, security personnel would be expected to respond with basic sidearms like 9mm pistols,” the party stated. “This puts not only security officers at risk but leaves entire communities more vulnerable to violent crime.”

In addition to safety concerns, the DA has raised alarm over the potential economic fallout. The proposed rules could lead to the arbitrary suspension of private security operations, which, in turn, may jeopardise short-term insurance coverage and destabilise an industry that employs over half a million South Africans.

“Private security plays a critical role in supporting the South African Police Service (SAPS), particularly given the high crime rates and limited capacity of public law enforcement,” the statement continued. “These regulations risk triggering massive job losses and undermining one of the few sectors effectively helping to keep communities safe.”

While acknowledging the existence of rogue elements within the industry, the DA argues that these can be dealt with under current legislation, without penalising law-abiding operators. The proposed amendments, it says, would do more harm to legitimate service providers than to the criminals they are meant to curb.

The party has also questioned the credibility of PSIRA, noting that the regulator has previously faced material findings by the Auditor-General. “It is deeply troubling that an entity with its own oversight challenges is now pushing through overreaching, impractical rules that threaten to cripple the very industry it is meant to oversee.”

The DA is urging all South Africans concerned about crime and community safety to join the campaign against what it describes as “draconian” new regulations.

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