Priority crimes are still too common, Gauteng provincial minister of community safety Firoz Cachalia said on Wednesday in announcing a second Operation Iron Fist.
”Specific types of violent crime remain at unacceptable levels, especially house robberies and business robberies,” Cachalia said in elaborating on Premier Mbhazima Shilowa’s state of the province address two days ago.
”The focus will now be in improving the capacity of the police to better identify, arrest and prosecute criminals who rob people in their homes, places of work and on our streets,” he said.
Shilowa said a priority this year is setting up a new R600-million 10111 system to provide a better-trained and faster response to emergencies.
Coordination of provincial and municipal crime fighting, and the linking of provincial criminal-justice system departments is also being worked on.
”They are both experiments … in holistic, integrated government,” said Cachalia.
Gauteng also intends monitoring and improving police performance, improving statistics and analytical ability and improving community participation through volunteers.
Cachalia said there is ”no quick fix to the crime challenge”.
The capacity to tackle serious violent crime has to be addressed in the short-term, as have the factors that lead people to choose crime as an option.
On track for 2010
Meanwhile, Gauteng’s plans for the 2010 Soccer World Cup are on track and stadiums will be ready for practice games, provincial minister of sport Barbara Creecy on Wednesday.
”Preparations are firmly on track to deliver a 2010 World Cup that will bring enormous benefits for Gauteng and for all in South Africa,” said Creecy at a briefing on the premier’s state of the province address.
The first phase of upgrade of three stadiums to be used as practice venues, which creates 1 816 jobs, is finished. These will be ready for the Confederations Cup in 2009.
A key run-up to 2010 is the international soccer exhibition, SoccerEx.
SoccerEx was wrested from Dubai, said Creecy, and in November will bring ”approximately 4 000 influential business and football individuals to the province and is expected to inject more than R700-million into the Gauteng economy”.
The 2010 tournament is expected to pump about R21,3-billion into South Africa’s economy, with about R12,7-billion in direct spending and the creation of about 159 000 jobs.
Creecy could not say how much of that would be in Gauteng, but pointed out that three of the nine 2010 venues were in Gauteng and most visitors would arrive via OR Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg.
”It’s very important” for Gauteng, she said.
Gauteng is also hosting the World Carnival Conference in September, bringing more than 400 delegates. — Sapa