Efforts are under way to curb rampant crime in the eThekwini metro to ensure the safety of residents and businesses, mayor Mxolisi Kaunda says.
Speaking at a media briefing on Wednesday, Kaunda raised concerns about the rising crime rate in the metro which he said accounted for nearly half of criminal incidents in the province.
He said measures to curb this include heightened police visibility in the city centre and the recruitment of 200 additional metro police. The mayor said the city employs 200 new police officers annually.
He said urban migration is one of the factors that contribute to increasing levels of crime in the metro.
“We are the only metro in the province, so people migrate here. We have more than 4-million people living in this city, therefore we can’t be immune to crime because this is where the economic activities are concentrated.”
Civilians, public servants including councillors and traditional leaders are all equally affected by crime, said Kaunda.
“We are concerned about the ongoing killings of public representatives and mass killings that we are observing in our city. To accelerate our fight against crime, we met the minister of police Bheki Cele to assess the progress in the implementation of crime prevention plans.”
The city centre has seen an increase in business robberies while townships including Umlazi, Kwamashu and Inanda have the highest rates of murder and sexual offences.
Police stations in these areas dominated the latest crime statistics for the third quarter of 2021/2022.
The Durban Central police station is listed among the top 30 stations that recorded the most serious crimes between October and December 2021.
The Umlazi, Durban Central and Inanda police stations are in the top 30 that recorded the most serious offences including rape, sexual assault and murder.
Inanda, KwaMashu E and Umlazi also had among the highest murder rates in the same period.
Kaunda said high levels of crime in the province and city centre not only threaten the safety of residents but also investment prospects for businesses that are targets of crime.
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Mxolisi Kaunda says efforts under way to tackle rising crime in eThekwini metro
Image: SANDILE NDLOVU
Efforts are under way to curb rampant crime in the eThekwini metro to ensure the safety of residents and businesses, mayor Mxolisi Kaunda says.
Speaking at a media briefing on Wednesday, Kaunda raised concerns about the rising crime rate in the metro which he said accounted for nearly half of criminal incidents in the province.
He said measures to curb this include heightened police visibility in the city centre and the recruitment of 200 additional metro police. The mayor said the city employs 200 new police officers annually.
He said urban migration is one of the factors that contribute to increasing levels of crime in the metro.
“We are the only metro in the province, so people migrate here. We have more than 4-million people living in this city, therefore we can’t be immune to crime because this is where the economic activities are concentrated.”
Civilians, public servants including councillors and traditional leaders are all equally affected by crime, said Kaunda.
“We are concerned about the ongoing killings of public representatives and mass killings that we are observing in our city. To accelerate our fight against crime, we met the minister of police Bheki Cele to assess the progress in the implementation of crime prevention plans.”
The city centre has seen an increase in business robberies while townships including Umlazi, Kwamashu and Inanda have the highest rates of murder and sexual offences.
Police stations in these areas dominated the latest crime statistics for the third quarter of 2021/2022.
The Durban Central police station is listed among the top 30 stations that recorded the most serious crimes between October and December 2021.
The Umlazi, Durban Central and Inanda police stations are in the top 30 that recorded the most serious offences including rape, sexual assault and murder.
Inanda, KwaMashu E and Umlazi also had among the highest murder rates in the same period.
Kaunda said high levels of crime in the province and city centre not only threaten the safety of residents but also investment prospects for businesses that are targets of crime.
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