They're in it for the money

A law-enforcement agency should never be driven by profit.

Otherwise, we might as well shut down police stations and outsource the service to ADT and Chubb.

Such privatisation would save the country a lot of heartache - such as having each national commissioner appointed by the democratic government shrouded in a cloud of corruption.

The taxpayer would not have to pay through the nose for the salaries of cops who sleep on the job or use unnecessary and lethal force against unarmed and protesting civilians.

But even in most capitalist countries, policing remains mainly a service provided by the state because of the recognition that law-enforcement and justice are better served if they are not driven by profit.

State law enforcement agencies are there to enforce public order and protect the rights of citizens as enshrined in the Constitution.

At local government level, especially in metropolitan areas, municipal police are there to ensure that by-laws are adhered to and traffic laws respected by all road users.

I am therefore stunned by revelations that the Johannesburg metro police department has given its officers an instruction to issue 100000 traffic fines a month in order to generate R20-million by the end of this financial year.

According to a weekend newspaper report, this means that some of the traffic cops might have to issue a minimum of 10 fines every day in order to meet their target.

If they do, they would be eligible for overtime during public holidays and weekends.

What possessed the department's bosses to take such a horrendous decision?

Have they forgotten that traffic policing is about making public roads safe and that it is not a money-making scheme?

This is a recipe for disaster for Gauteng motorists. As one angry traffic policeman told the Saturday Star: "We now have to go out of our way and find fault with motorists instead of enforcing by-laws. This is going to lead to the victimisation of drivers who will be punished for minor offences."

The department defends itself by saying the instruction is a "management tool used to measure performance of its officers on the streets".

In other words, an officer who spent a day directing traffic at one of Johannesburg's many dysfunctional traffic lights is going to be valued much less than a colleague who goes around dishing out tickets to motorists.

Traffic cops are adamant that it all has to do with moneymaking.

"This is a subversion of our mandate because we were told that the city is in budget constraints and therefore we need to raise revenue," one of the officers told the newspaper.

One is not arguing that traffic cops should not be issuing tickets to drivers found breaking the law. But what I find objectionable is that the instruction is motivated purely by the need to generate more revenue for the apparently cash-strapped Johannesburg metro.

It is this kind of private-sector mentality among many of our public institutions that is discrediting the whole concept of state ownership of strategic entities for greater public good.

Though the ruling party tries to persuade us that ours is a developmental state - and its youth wing argues that the nationalisation of strategic economic sectors would lead to a better life for all - the actions of government officials suggest that there is now little difference between state and private-sector ownership because both are chasing profit.

At least, with the private sector, the service is often - but not always - efficient. And if you are not happy with the services of one private business, you can always go to its competitors.

Motorists in Gauteng already believe that they are being used as cash cows by the authorities after being told that they will have to pay tolls for using the newly renovated highways.

And now they learn that Johannesburg's municipal bosses have them as targets in their bid to raise R20-million!

If authorities at the local, provincial and national levels are not careful, their actions will fuel a lot of public animosity towards the state and its institutions.

Yes, we want governmental institutions and civil servants to be as efficient and productive as many of the organisations in the private sector.

But they should not lose sight of the fact that, as government, theirs is not to milk the citizens dry.