Cop-gang link report expected to top provincial legislature debate on child murders

THE DA-led provincial government under the leadership of Premier Alan Winde is expected to face tough questions relating to his failure to release the Western Cape Police Ombudsman report sparked by fears that criminal gangs had captured parts of the police's top brass in the province.  

Winde received the report in 2022 but has repeatedly refused to make it public, saying he wanted to protect SAPS and law enforcement officers and that the investigation was only about ascertaining what powers he had to deal with the issue. 

He also said that while the findings found that he could establish a commission of inquiry, he was advised against it because some of the matters would be sub judice. 

In an oversight visit to the Ombudsman's office on Tuesday, members of the Police Oversight and Community Safety Committee were given an overview of the report’s findings. 

ANC spokesperson on police oversight and community safety, Benson Ngqentsu said: “It was just an ordinary oversight. In the course of the oversight, we asked for the briefing. We were given an overview of the report.  

“If the report was released then and its recommendations were implemented, potentially the SAPS in the province would not be at the (current) state of deterioration. 

“Given that we call for the report to be released and be handed over to a Commission of Inquiry to probe further, guided by the report as a basis to dismantle the tentacles of the rot in the police. The infiltration of the SAPS in the province from the lower level to the upper level and those who are implicated, should be brought to book. We must be able to dismantle it and discover where the gaps are, what must be done to fill the gaps."

Another committee member, John Michels from the National Coloured Congress (NCC), echoed Ngqentsu’s sentiment, calling for the report to be “released immediately”.

Winde's office has failed to respond to further questions on the matter, including whether he now thought the community could have benefited had he established the Commission in light of the Madlanga Commission and the Ad Hoc Committee looking into similar allegations at a national level.  

Meanwhile, the DA has tabled a debate on gangsterism and child killings for the legislature sitting on Thursday. 

“The blood of every child killed is a stain on our society. This goes beyond being just a policing problem, it is a moral emergency. Both the DA debate and motion are because we cannot stand by while our neighbourhoods are used as battlegrounds. Our message is: let us protect every child," said DA MPL, Gillion Bosman.  

Cape Times