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Today, the Democratic Alliance was at the Randburg Magistrates Court for the the trial of the South African Police Service (SAPS) blue light mafia officers from Deputy President Paul Mashatile’s VIP protection detail who were caught on video assaulting motorists last year.

This trial is not just about the violent assault and excessive use of force, it is about what Minister Bheki Cele’s incompetence and his ego have done to the SAPS. Minister Cele has created a culture of impunity within SAPS where members of the SAPS VIP protection unit, together with many other SAPS members, have developed a flagrant disregard for the rights of citizens because there is little to no consequence management within the SAPS.

It was only out of sheer luck that this incident was recorded – the real question is, how many more of these events have occurred in the last 5 years on the Minister’s watch and how many have gone unpunished?

Making matters worse Minister Cele’s SAPS has closed 5,4 million cases in the last 5 years due to insufficient evidence or leads. This can be directly attributed to the loss of more than 8000 detectives over the past 6 years and a general decline in the quality of police work.

The DA will now be submitting a PAIA application to the Minister of Police to get a full breakdown of how many of these 5 million cases relate to violent crimes and crimes committed by the SAPS #BlueLightMafia which are being swept under the rug.

In these next 21 days, 1760 people will be murdered, unable to cast their vote for a better South Africa. In spite of tears of horrific crime statistics President Ramaphosa has failed to remove Minister Cele. It is now up to the people of South Africa to remove the ANC from government and vote for a DA government that can rescue South Africa from crime.

It is only the DA that is serious about fighting crime and rescuing South Africa. Only the DA will ban blue light VIP convoys whilst professionalising the SAPS force so that assaults such as these are but a distant memory of a failed and uncaring ANC government.

Issued by Andrew Whitfield - DA Shadow Minister of Police