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The fact that the National Police Commissioner Riah Phiyega has failed to appoint permanent provincial heads of Crime Intelligence is totally unacceptable. Only two out of nine provinces have permanent provincial heads for this unit. As the acting head of crime intelligence does not have security clearance, one must presume that none of the acting heads do either.

Phiyega has been delaying the permanent appointments of provincial heads of crime intelligence since June this year. Provincial heads have been in acting positions for between nine months and two years.

The crime intelligence unit is fundamental in the fight against crime. It provides knowledge through intelligence-gathering services to the police so they can help fight commercial, organised and drug-related crime.

The unit also provides an early warning system for crime hotspots or potential violence. The abysmal situation in the unit was most evident at Marikana. A functional unit would have identified the situation early on and the weeks of protests and violence could have been proactively managed. The North West is one of the provinces without a permanent head.

The release of the crime statistics this week could provide evidence of just how bad the situation is in crime intelligence and the DA will be keeping a close eye on the commercial and drug-related crime statistics.

Phiyega must prioritise making permanent appointments within the next few weeks so that the Crime Intelligence Unit can start functioning effectively.