An assault on SAPS is an assault on the state – Acting President

Acting President Paul Mashatile says any attack on the South African Police Service (SAPS) is an assault on the state itself and that those responsible for such acts, equivalent to treason, must face decisive action.
He was speaking at the SAPS National Commemoration Day at the Union Buildings in Pretoria on Sunday.
“Minister Mchunu, we must make sure the police have enough tools to support their counterattack against criminals. We also need to find a balance to address the major issue of an increasing population, which police recruits simply cannot keep up with,” he said.

Acting President Mashatile said the country must strive to attain the United Nations’ suggested ratio of one police officer for every 220 persons. He said the police-to-population ratio in South Africa has recently increased, rising from about 1:353 in 2014 to 1:427 in 2023.

He told the police officers gathered at the Union Buildings that the 39 members being commemorated had entrusted them with a significant duty to carry on the baton and guarantee peace and order.

“May you never tire of serving your nation by working harder to imprison all offenders in honour of your fallen colleagues. In the honour of these gallant crime fighters, you must remain unshaken in your resolve to keep our communities safe. May you uphold the integrity of the badge and relentlessly strive to bring those responsible for any police officer’s death to justice,” he said.

Acting President Mashatile said the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations, commonly known as the Hawks, had arrested 18 suspected police killers between April and June this year.

Twelve of them were convicted and sentenced to a cumulative 139 years imprisonment. The court sentenced one of the killers to life in prison.

The Hawks’ work is ongoing to bring justice to the families who lost their loved ones in the fight against crime, he said, adding that other cases are pending in court and that he hoped they would receive harsh sentences.

Acting President Paul Mashatile says any attack on the South African Police Service (SAPS) is an assault on the state itself and that those responsible for such acts, equivalent
to treason, must face decisive action.
He was speaking at the SAPS National Commemoration Day at the Union Buildings in Pretoria on Sunday.

“Of grave concern is the fact that, since 2021, inclusive of today, we have commemorated a total of 140 police men and women who lost their lives in the hands of criminals while performing their official duties.

“This number is alarmingly high, especially considering that these are men and women who have the potential to lead the future SAPS to a crime-free South Africa,” Acting President Mashatile said.

The Acting President emphasised that it was imperative for a collaborative approach to resolving internal challenges, including low morale among members, SAPS members involved in criminal activities, and ageing infrastructure, in order to enable the police to fulfil their constitutional obligations.

“Fighting crime should not only be the SAPS responsibility; communities are expected to work with the police to fight criminal activity, protect their properties, and help identify criminals. “Criminals are humans who live in our communities, and residents know where they live. As a result, we urge all community members to inform the police of criminals’ whereabouts to enable them to promptly arrest all criminal elements in our communities,” he said.

Mashatile called for the strengthening of Community Policing Forums (CPF).

Focus on the following statement from the above article/scenario:

“May you never tire of serving your nation by working harder to imprison all offenders in honour of your fallen colleagues. In the honour of these gallant crime fighters, you must remain unshaken in your resolve to keep our communities safe. May you uphold the integrity of the badge and relentlessly strive to bring those responsible for any police officer’s death to justice,” he said.

Write an essay in which you deal with the following:

  • Define the terms “ethical policing”, “ethics” and “police integrity”. (5)
  • Outline the Code of Ethics of the South African Police Service by referring to the application and explanation of the five principles (integrity, respect for diversity, obedience of the law, service excellence, public approval) and provide a workplace example of how you will apply the principles. (Mark allocation: 5 marks respectively for the application and the explanation of the five principles, and 5 marks for workplace examples.). (15)

Question 2 (25 marks)

Provide nine hypothetical statements of quality service delivery in policing that would impact positively on the phenomenon of fear of crime in the community.  (9)
Depict the core components of partnerships in policing (1 mark) and elaborate briefly on the value of each component in terms of partnership empowerment.  (9)
Depict the building blocks of ethics in a drawing (1 mark) and discuss each one reflecting how “not” adhering to each would impact on the police image of service delivery. (7)

Question 3 (25 marks)

The policing official is perceived by communities as a representative of the Police Service as organisation rather than as an individual. This, to a greater extent, applies to the policing official who performs visible policing activities, such as patrolling. He or she is exposed to constant scrutiny and observation from the community and becomes the image bearer of the Police Service, representing the attitude and disposition of the Police Service towards the community they serve. Purposeful and effective patrolling by police officials instils a feeling of security and safety in those they serve.

Define the term “patrol”.   (2)
Outline the five (5) objectives of patrolling.
  • Protection (5)
  • Interactive relationship: dialogue (5)
  • Reassurance and comfort (3)
  • Maintaining peace and stability (3)
  • Maintaining a service delivery function (3)
    Outline the four (4) patrolling strategies in your own words. (4)

Outline the Code of Ethics of the South African Police Service by referring to the application and explanation of the five principles (integrity, respect for diversity, obedience of the law, service excellence, public approval) and provide a workplace example of how you will apply the principles. (Mark allocation: 5 marks respectively for the application and the explanation of the five principles, and 5 marks for workplace examples.). (15)

Answers to Above Questions on SAPS Case Study

Answer 1: Ethical policing is an important concept that implies the moral principles and values aimed at guiding law practitioners to act fairly and in accordance to the law.

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