KZN top cop reins in his troops and orders them to be searched at Woolies stores
Image: SYDNEY SESHIBEDI
KwaZulu-Natal’s top cop has called his troops to heel‚ insisting that officers must submit themselves to being searched when entering Woolworth’s stores across the province.
Moreover‚ Provincial Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi said that his officers shouldn’t be shopping in uniform whether they were on duty or not.
His statement‚ issued on Thursday‚ follows a report in a daily newspaper which reported that police officers had complained about being searched at Woolworth’s outlets.
The compulsory searches have been instituted after the retail chain was targeted by an arsonist‚ with several incendiary devices planted in stores in Durban.
Mkhwanazi said that officers would toe the line.
“These searches are necessary to mitigate the risk posed to shoppers who visit these stores and we shall support such compulsory measures‚” he said.
“Police officers who visit these stores as clients of Woolworths should be subject to the same procedures reserved for all customers‚ whether they are in uniform or not.
“The SAPS dress orders and other directives specifically prohibits police officers from shopping whilst in uniform‚ whether they are on or off duty and commanders at all levels are compelled to enforce these orders‚” he added.