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The DA in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) has developed a 10-point rural safety plan as the festive season approaches and as the province continues to experience high levels of serious crime.

The plan comes in the absence of any form of intervention or solutions from KZN’s Taliban faction ANC government and in particular Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) MEC, Super Zuma and his department.

While December is a time of celebration and a time to relax after the hard work of the year, the reality is that our province remains a crime zone.

Law enforcement operations have committed to being available during the holiday season but given the failures of SAPS to protect these communities, it is imperative that KZN’s rural residents also take personal responsibility for their own safety.

The DA appeals to farmers and rural communities to ensure this by implementing the following plan:
1. Ensure that alarm systems are working and keep in touch with security control rooms
2. Join community safety structures and ensure communications devices still work in the event of loadshedding
3. Look for any suspicious activity and report detailed information to relevant security structures
4. Ensure you have a panic button with you at all times and keep family and friends informed of your whereabouts
5. Avoid carrying large sums of cash
6. Keep doors locked and do not stay home alone if possible
7. Ensure that emergency numbers are visible to all household members including neighbours, local SAPS and CPF structures, local security companies and security coordinators
8. Ensure that your dogs have access to all areas of your property and it is neat and tidy with no places for criminals to hide
9. Keep outside lights on at night, particularly around gates and other access points and;
10. Ensure that your livestock is marked.

A common modus operandi by criminals is to approach a farm claiming that their livestock have gone missing there. Yet their primary aim is to assess the farm and look for any security loopholes.

Farmers need to ensure that they do not allow strangers onto their premises. They should also refrain from selling livestock directly and instead sell through agents. Above all, they must remain alert and report any concerns to the rural safety coordinator or SAPS in the area.

Our province’s rural communities should not be under siege on a daily basis. This is a direct result of an ANC government that has allowed the situation to deteriorate while it stands idly by.

In 2024, KZN’s citizens will have the opportunity to rescue our province when they go to the polls.

Issued by Sithembiso Ngema, MPL - DA KZN Spokesperson on Agriculture and Rural Development