Social crimes, which are on the increase, are often committed behind closed doors and difficult to police, according to Minister of Safety and Security Charles Nqakula.
Addressing a Business against Crime dinner at Sandton on Wednesday, he said combined efforts by government ministries have increased the number of arrests and improved investigations.
”We are also working with the social sector of government to create better conditions for all people so that we can deal with poverty and squalor,” he said.
Nqakula said the government hopes to eliminate informal settlements within 10 years.
”Proper housing and better facilities will keep young people away from crime, including drug and alcohol abuse.”
He said that in the same way that city crime syndicates head for rural towns when police put pressure on them, successes in targeting bank robberies and heist gangs have the negative affect of robbers holding up shopping malls that are softer targets.
However, the annual crime statistics released on Wednesday showed that bank robberies had increased by 7,5% and cash-in-transit robberies by 14,6%.
Drug-related crimes increased by 33,5% in the past financial year.
Nqakula said his department is trying to work out parameters for its relationship with the private security industry.
”The board of the Security Industry Association invited me to their launch on October 4,” he said. ”We shall look for ways and means to structure that relationship.”
He also said he sees no need for crime statistics to be published any more frequently than they are at present, which is once a year.
”It makes sense to track statistics over longer periods,” he said, likening it to a company presenting results to its board only once a year. ”We believe that over 12 months we will arrive at better statistics.”
Nqakula attacked critics whom he said claimed he was undermining Parliament by not answering certain sensitive questions about security, including the number of VIP guards used to protect former deputy president Jacob Zuma.
”Why should I give that information publicly?” he asked.
He said such questions and criticism weaken operational strategies.
He called on peace-loving South Africans to take a stand against crime, as those involved in Business against Crime have done.
Nqakula said South Africans who claim police have lost the war against crime only encourage criminals.
”It gives them the bravado to engage in more ghastly criminal acts. That attitude also demoralises those involved in law enforcement,” he said. — Sapa