DA MP questions SAPS resource deployment at Kempton Park Police Station

An unannounced oversight visit to Kempton Park SAPS yesterday, (September 29) has raised questions about the resources available at the station, amid heightened policing operations announced following the discovery of women’s bodies across Ekurhuleni, reports Kempton Express.

DA MP Ian Cameron said the visit found “no visible sign at station level” of the additional policing capacity that he said would be expected following government’s announcement of a policing “lockdown” in Kempton Park and surrounding areas.

Cameron said the government announced on September 15 that police visibility would be significantly increased through Operation Shanela, with enhanced operations planned for Kempton Park and surrounding areas.

“Two weeks later, what we found on the ground raises serious questions about whether that heightened capacity has been sustained,” Cameron said.

His comments come as police continue investigating the deaths of women whose bodies have been discovered across Ekurhuleni in recent months. Police have not confirmed that the cases are linked.

According to Cameron, Kempton Park SAPS was without electricity when the oversight team arrived, with no functioning generator.

He said station management indicated that an application for a generator had been made approximately three years ago and had apparently been approved, but the generator had not yet been procured.

“A police station must remain operational and safe during power failures,” Cameron said.

He said the station’s vehicle fleet was also under pressure.

According to records provided during the visit, the station has 59 vehicles, with several reportedly at garages for repairs. Cameron said one vehicle had been unavailable for 98 working days.

The records also reportedly show that 27 vehicles have been boarded since 2020, with replacement vehicles not keeping pace with the losses.

Cameron said the purpose of the visit was not to criticise police members working at the station.

“Even if they wanted to dramatically increase police visibility, they cannot deploy resources they simply do not have,” he said.

The DA MP said an earlier unannounced oversight visit to Tembisa SAPS had identified similar fleet pressures.

According to Cameron, Tembisa SAPS has 68 vehicles against a granted fleet of 107, leaving a shortfall of 39 vehicles. He said station management indicated that approximately three visible-policing vehicles could generally be deployed during a shift.

Cameron said the Tembisa visit also identified positive aspects, including functioning radios and telephones, docket-scanning capacity, operational holding cells and dedicated records for domestic violence and protection orders.

However, he said infrastructure supporting victims and the ageing vehicle fleet remained concerns.

Police Ministry says enhanced operations are underway

The Police Ministry, meanwhile, said targeted, intelligence-led and high-visibility policing operations are underway in affected parts of Ekurhuleni.

In a statement following the Police Ministry’s member statements on September 29, the ministry said its response to the discovery of the murdered women had been twofold.

It said a multidisciplinary investigative team had been established under the leadership of Acting Deputy National Commissioner Lieutenant General Senthumule.

According to the ministry, the investigation has resulted in the arrest of four suspects linked to some of the murders, while another suspect died by suicide when police were closing in on him.

“We are confident that further breakthroughs will be made,” the ministry said.

It also said targeted, intelligence-led, high-visibility “lockdown” operations were underway in affected parts of Ekurhuleni as part of Operation Shanela 2.

The ministry said the enhanced operations had received additional financial and human resources.

“These enhanced operations are part of Operation Shanela 2 and, as we did to ensure the 30 June anti-illegal immigrant protests remained peaceful, these operations have received the necessary additional financial and human resources,” the ministry said.

The ministry said further announcements on additional steps and resource allocations to support law enforcement functions relating to gender-based violence and femicide would be made in the coming week.

Cameron has now questioned what additional personnel, vehicles and operational resources were deployed to sustain the promised Kempton Park policing operation.

“The announced lockdown must be visible and measurable on the ground, not only in an announcement,” he said.

The Police Ministry has not, in the statement provided, specified the number of additional personnel or vehicles allocated specifically to Kempton Park.

In response to questions sent to SAPS following the oversight visit, the Kempton Express was told SAPS Gauteng will respond to the findings of an oversight visit by the Chairperson of the National Portfolio Committee on Police through internal protocols.

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