The Mercury reports that the eThekwini Metro Police is grossly understaffed, having recruited less than an average of 100 officers per year for the past eight years.
This was said by the Head of Metro Police, Commissioner Steve Middleton, who was speaking at the municipality’s stakeholder session on crime prevention, held at the City Hall on Monday. Highlighting the challenges to effective bylaw enforcement, Middleton said: “Last year, we recruited 200 officers and are currently on a drive to recruit about 400 more. These recruits will undergo training before they are ready to hit the streets in about six to eight months.” Currently, there were just over 2,500 officers working in shifts. Taking into account the city’s surface area, this left one-eighth of an officer on the ground at any given time for every square kilometre. Middleton said it was difficult to maintain visibility with those numbers. Applications for the current recruitment drive close on Friday, 7 September at midday.
- Read this report by Nosipho Mngoma in full at The Mercury
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