South Africa

Crime on the Cape Flats: WC minister has a plan

Crime in the Western Cape Province, especially on the Cape Flats in Cape Town, has become an increasing concern for community members, including politicians. Following the May 2024 election, the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) Anroux Marais was appointed Provincial Minister for Police Oversight and Community Safety in the province. She previously served as WC Minister for Arts, Sport, and Culture.

Leaving her previous ministry was not easy, but she is ready for the new challenge, Marais says. “When I packed up my culture office, I said to myself, this is now the end of my journey here, and now I must take up a new role. And as I entered this new role, I just saw and heard about all the shootings on the Cape Flats, an absolute bloodbath. So, the start of the journey was not easy at all.”

She says curbing crime and violence is difficult as the problem is “generational.”

“It’s not easy, but we will have a coordination role with other stakeholders, like social development, arts and culture, economic development, as well as health, the City of Cape Town, and other municipalities, to see how we can bring down the crime and violence rates in our province by using a holistic approach.”

The Western Cape Government recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the National Government, which Marais says will help fight crime in the province. “With this MOU, I think we will also be able to drive our plan for the Devolution of Powers Bill.” With this bill, the DA seeks to have police powers devolved to the province, arguing that it would help solve crimes more directly.

Marais says the criminal intelligence of the police is not up to standard, which is something she wishes to advocate for, and she believes the devolution of powers can help with this. She also says boots on the ground are another problem that needs to be addressed. “We need more police officers in the province. This will really help fight crime. We need the ratio to be fair.”

On gangsterism, Marais says it saddens her that young people fall into it. “We need to empower our communities and give them hope, that’s important, because it’s terrible to see how so many of our young people are embedded in gangsterism. So, it’s a great challenge, but a challenge I am willing to take on.”

What does she want for the province? Marais says she wants a “safe environment for tourism and everyone who stays in or visits the province.” She believes this can only be achieved by getting more officers on the ground, improving crime intelligence, and devolving powers.