After battling for months to get a copy of Ekurhuleni metro police’s armoury audit report, the DA is now taking the matter to Parliament.
Mike Waters MP said he submitted a request for a copy of the report under the Promotion of Access to Information Act.
“This has been necessary due to the fact that Ekurhuleni metro seems to be doing everything in its power to not make the highly sensitive report public. All efforts by Jaco Terblanche, the DA member of community safety in Ekurhuleni, in getting the audit report made public have fallen on deaf ears,” Waters said on Thursday.
Kempton Express reported in May that the DA in Ekurhuleni believes the number of missing firearms from the Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) armoury is much higher than the figure released by the MMC for community safety in March.
At the time, alderman Vivienne Chauke said 14 firearms to the value of R161 000 had been lost, but Terblanche believes the actual figure could be closer to more than 100 missing firearms.
Waters said Terblanche asked questions in council as far back as September 26 last year, where, in the reply, he was promised the report would be available on October 31. This has never materialised.
He then sent a letter to the MMC oo community safety on November 2 last year, requesting the report, but to no avail.
“During the community safety oversight meeting on March 13, EMPD undertook to give the members of the meeting the armoury audit assessment and report by March 16, which they then delayed to April 6.
“When councillor Terblanche tabled a motion on April 26 in the council meeting, the council took a decision that the report would be tabled on May 8 at the community safety oversight meeting, which was then further delayed to June 5. It has still not been tabled,” Waters said.
“I then asked a question in Parliament, where the minister of cooperative governance and traditional affairs indicated that a comprehensive audit assessment of all EMPD’s firearms was being conducted by the Hawks. The minister further promised that the firearms audit assessment findings and the report would be presented to the council in September 2018. Again, the findings were never tabled.
“It is obvious the ANC is trying to hide something embarrassing in the report. Otherwise, why will they not release the report?” Waters said.
“One must ask how many weapons are actually unaccounted for, for the ANC to use such delaying tactics? In addition, alderman Chauke is in contempt of council for failing to execute a resolution of council and must explain why she has not released the report to date.”
