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The Democratic Alliance (DA) wants to know from the newly appointed acting Provincial Police Commissioner, Maj Gen Koliswa Otola, how she intends addressing the under-resourcing of police stations in Namaqualand.

This comes after a recent oversight inspection last week by the Legislature’s Portfolio Committee for Transport, Safety and Liaison revealed the poor state of policing at Nababeep and Springbok police stations. These stations provide safety services for at least 75 surrounding small farms and other towns such as Concordia and Okiep.

The dark holding cells at the Nababeep station are in an appalling condition and not only compromise the safety of prisoners but also security at the facility. The Victim Friendly Facility is also in dire need of more equipment, as a desk and a chair are not sufficient to create a safe space for victims of sexual offences.

Additionally, we are especially concerned about the ongoing slow-turnaround time for the repair of South Africa Police Service (SAPS) vehicles. At the Nababeep station, four out of eight vehicles used for policing have been in repairs for a number of months already, with no indication of when repairs will be done. The 17 vehicles at the Springbok station are also only in an average working condition, with four reported to be problematic.

This is worrisome. Even more so, given extremely poor road conditions that pose a constant threat to the operationality of SAPS vehicles.

The DA in the Northern Cape has been lobbying for immediate intervention from government since 2019, to urgently provide adequate resources to our SAPS stations. Under-resourced police services are unable to wage an effective war on crime, instead causing under-resourced officials and stations to themselves fall prey to criminals.

While the DA welcomes the long-awaited appointment of a Provincial Police Commissioner, albeit in an Acting capacity, Maj Gen Koliswa Otola certainly has her work cut out for her, given the inadequate and declining circumstances at SAPS stations across the province.

The DA will write a letter to Maj Gen Koliswa Otola to determine what her action steps will be to rectify the conditions of SAPS stations in Namaqualand, and the rest of the province, so that policing can finally be restored and strengthened.

Issued by Ofentse Mokae, MPL - DA Northern Cape Spokesperson of Transport, Safety & Liaison