Police boss slams defenders of criminals

The National Police Commissioner, General Fannie Masemola, has come out guns blazing in defense of the SAPS, saying officers will continue to fight fire with fire, whenever necessary.

Raising concern over the silence of many when police officers are killed in the line of duty, General Masemola questioned statements “issued in defense of criminals”.

“For as long as criminals attack police officers, the police will respond decisively as empowered by relevant legislation that governs the work of the police. Police have observed with concern, statements issued in defense of criminals and questionable silence when police officers are killed in the line of duty including community members, who are always at risk and at times killed as innocent bystanders,” the police chief says in a statement.

According to General Masemola, 21 police officers have been killed in the line of duty since April last year.

“This is an alarming figure that calls for community members and civil society to rally behind the police and fight against life threatening criminality. It is the responsibility of the police to stamp the authority of the state and maintain law and order. Therefore any act of lawlessness and brazen attacks on police and community members at crime scenes will be correctly addressed with authority by capable members of the SAPS,” he says.

Masemola says over 1.3 million people have been arrested for various crimes, including murder, robber and rape through Operation Shanela, which he says has proven to be an efficient crime-fighting strategy across the country.

Masemola’s defense of the men and women in blue comes just days after Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) Executive Director, Jennifer Ntlatseng, expressed concern over the high number of alleged criminals being killed by the police in KwaZulu-Natal. It also comes amid the public’s unhappiness over the probe into that province’s police boss, Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, who some South Africans believe is being targetted for his stern stance against criminals.

According to IPID’s 2023/24 report, KZN accounts for 25% of suspect deaths nationwide.

The police watchdog is currently investigating alleged police misconduct in the province and has requested Mkhwanazi to submit a sworn statement on claims that he interfered with the arrest of a senior prison official in 2023.

Lieutenant-General Mkhwanazi has meanwhile defended his team’s hard stance against suspected criminals.

EXCLUSIVE | KZN provincial commissioner General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi speaks out about a directive which is resulting in his members being charged for murder – by default – whenever a suspect is killed, before an IPID investigation is completed.

He says he’s pushing for this to be… pic.twitter.com/n1xDOdLWUj

— Dasen Thathiah (@DasenThathiah) April 6, 2024