MBOMBELA – The minister of Police, General Bheki Cele was at the Nelspruit Rugby Stadium for the annual Safer Festive Season Inspection Tour today. This year’s festive season’s theme is, #TightGrip.
In his address, he did not mince his words that the province is losing its grip on crime and intends to instruct the Deputy Minister of the department, Cassel Mathale to come to visit the province and intensify law enforcement.
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“Mpumalanga is losing its comfort zone of fighting crime. This is one province that we have not looked at when dealing with the fighting of crime because there’s been a comfort zone, always. You are losing it because we’re always dealing with Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern and Western Cape provinces. I’m sure you’re jealous because you don’t want to be part of those criminal provinces. I see that you want to join them and I don’t want you to. Your statistics don’t tell a good story. Murders, robberies, burglaries, rape and gender-based violence are rife and I’m not here to talk about figures but this is not looking good,” said Cele.
He further added that police are letting criminals off the hook while gender-based violence is also high. That is not the picture the minister does not want to see and tolerate.
“The deputy minister and I have agreed that we will come and spend some time here to find out where we are losing it. This operation is called #TighGrip and I don’t see the tight grip instead I see a loose grip. We can’t have a loose grip around criminals. Why do you allow criminals to take over? why do you smile with them? why do you romance with them? Squeeze the space and make sure that they’re not part of us.”
