Police Minister Nkosinathi Nhleko has confirmed that a National Tactical Response Plan is to be immediately implemented and will conduct on-site investigations assessing the circumstances of all officers who have been killed.
As directed by President Jacob Zuma, Nhleko said: “We have taken heed of this instruction and have put in measures under the auspices of Police Safety Strategy.”
Station and relief commanders will ensure directives and standing orders regarding safety are implemented.
Inspections will take place to ensure officers have the right safety gear and they will be briefed on all possible dangerous suspects and potential situations when reporting for duty.
“Over and above that, there will be assessments of the environment; to identify root causes as well as potential threats and trends in order to enhance preventative measures and access to police premises in order to address safety and security vulnerabilities,” he said.
These assessments will further assist the police to determine the modus operandi of perpetrators, threats to members and trends of criminal activity.
Nhleko said: “We have embarked on the profiling of suspects and identifying high risk areas such as gang infested areas, descriptions of dangerous suspects and suspicious vehicles and enhance awareness amongst police members to strengthen operational and psychological readiness on a regular basis.
“The leadership of the police has decided on ensuring that adequate, serviceable resources and equipment are available to support and strengthen police members during deployment.”
It has been ensured that there is a need to identify early warning signs, of potential depression, stress, suicide, substance abuse, anger and relationship deficiencies and involve Employee Health and Wellness to strengthen psychological and emotional fitness of police officers on and off duty.
