That's General Cele, to you

Police National Commissioner Bheki Cele will soon be referred to as “general”, he said in Johannesburg on Thursday.

“It will not be a distant future when you will be speaking to ‘general’ rather than ‘commissioner’,” Cele said at a media briefing following the launch of a television programme to be used in the fight against crime.

Moves to change the ranks within the police force were under way after President Jacob Zuma made the call earlier this year.

“The process is under way ... internally we are almost there.”

Deputy national commissioners Hamilton Hlela and Magda Stander were compiling the changes to the ranks and these would be submitted to Minister of Police Nathi Mthethwa soon.

Stander, speaking on the sidelines of the briefing, said the ranks were “demilitarised” in 1995 and this had an impact on the South African Police Service.

“We demilitarised the ranks in 1995 and that impacted on discipline ...

there is lots of confusion because sometimes people ... talk about inspectors ... inspectors are supposed to be on buses.

“The new approach will probably bring back that discipline, it will instil discipline again and to add respect for the police when it becomes the police force again,” she said.

The new ranks formed part of a broader move to change the police from a “service” to a “force”. The need for this was highlighted by Zuma when he addressed commissioners of the country’s police stations in Pretoria last month.

Hlela said the ranks would be constable, sergeant, warrant officer, lieutenant, captain, major, colonel and brigadier. They would also include major-general, lieutenant-general and general.

“General is the national commissioner, there will only be one general in the police,” Hlela said.

A few changes to the regulations had yet to be made before the new ranks took effect, as well legislative changes on the change from police service to police force.

Mthethwa, speaking on amendments to section 49 of the Criminal Procedure Act—which would give police more power in violent and life-threatening situations—said police officers already exercised restraint when dealing with criminals.

He said they were not compelled to fire a warning shot by the Act, yet this was the practice today.

“... that’s an indication that you don’t have Mad Maxes and cowboys in the police. The very captain we are burying this weekend, Captain Scheepers, is an example of the point we are making,” he said, speaking at the briefing flanked by his deputy, Fikile Mbalula.

Captain Charl Scheepers was shot during a robbery over the weekend after ordering an alleged robber to put down his firearm. Scheepers later died in hospital.

“Policemen and women work under severe circumstances and in their duty, they are not mad, even if you amend Section 49 we are not going to find them in the streets shooting people, they would be doing that even now,” he said.

“... officers ... are a buffer between our country our people and anarchy and all that they need from you is support. They are tired of going to memorial services, of going to funerals and we want to society to go with us to say let’s strengthen the hand of the police and let’s for once believe in them,” he said, urging society to get behind the police in their bid to tackle crime.

The television programme When Duty Calls, following in the footsteps of Police File, would help fight crime and enhance government efforts to deal with crime against women and children. - Sapa