Police Minister Senzo Mchunu followed up on Monday’s speech outlining new policing priorities by calling for an increase in the police budget, which totals R113.5 billion for 2024/25, up from R102.6 billion in the 2022/23 financial year.
Standing firm on his department’s priorities, the Minister vowed to build capacity and enhance police visibility in the country, so citizens may see “here are the police.” This would be done by improving community responsiveness through an increased crime detection rate, and strengthening the Crime Intelligence (CI) capability in order to build the public’s confidence in the police.
This would require recruiting additional members, something the Minister viewed as “crucial for addressing growing demands.” Noting the previous year’s budget had allowed for the recruitment of 10,000 new officers, Mchunu said that “of course, these numbers are not enough.”
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