Dear Editor
After the brutal murder of Piketberg farmer, Hendrik Pretorius, the DA reinforces its call for the devolution of policing powers to provinces. This will, amongst other things, enable the Western Cape to immediately reinstate rural safety units.
Hendrik was a well-known and respected member of the community, and we wish to send our deepest condolences to his family and friends.
Our farming communities are extremely vulnerable and, since the South African Police Service (SAPS) is critically under-staffed and therefore not able to protect these communities, it is imperative that rural safety units be reinstated as a matter of urgency.
We cannot continue down a path that only leads to more killings, more violence, and more blood. The ANC government needs to acknowledge that they simply cannot run an effective police service and that they are incapable of providing viable solutions that will make our vulnerable communities safer. SAPS needs to be devolved as a matter of urgency to allow provinces to manage their own police service.
Regards
Tertuis Simmers
DA Provincial Leader, Western Cape
