scholarly journals Total Quality Management (TQM): A Catalyst for Service Delivery in the South African Police Service

Author(s):  
Michael Reddy

September 2014 marked the release of the 2013/14 crime statistics in South Africa by the National Commissioner of the SAPS and the Minister of Police. Does a sense of safety and security fill the atmosphere? Do most South Africans, investors, and tourists alike believe that the crime rate in South Africa is reflective of a war zone and that South Africa is in a quagmire that engenders irretrievable damage to the lives of the citizenry and the economy? It is accepted that crime is a conflation of a number of economic, social and cultural factors; hence as a reviewable point, can the SAPS ensure the development of unassailable and perpetual policy solutions, underpinned with the highest quality that provides a guarantee of the citizen’s basic constitutional right to freedom and life. This article reviews literature on TQM and extrapolates lessons learnt to the practical functioning of the SAPS with a view to provide a myriad of TQM principles that may be considered by SAPS Management; this could serve as a catalyst for an improved policing service in South Africa.

2021 ◽  
Vol 34 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-30
Author(s):  
Terrence R Carney

Difficult text formulations, on the one hand, as well as poor linguistic skills and comprehension on the other, can severely hamper the communication effort of basic human rights during the judicial process. The rights entrenched in s 35 of the Constitution of South Africa (Act 108 of 1996), as they apply to individuals who are arrested, detained and accused, and read out by a member of the local South African Police Service (SAPS), are written in a legal register that can be too difficult for additional language speakers to understand. This begs the question of whether arrested, detained and accused individuals are fully aware of their rights and whether they can exercise these rights if they do not understand the language that expresses them. This article appraises the potential comprehensibility of the notice of rights (SAPS 14A), as provided to arrested, detained and accused individuals by the SAPS. The researcher’s assessments indicate that the text is pitched at an English readability level suited to university graduates and could be too difficult for South Africans with limited schooling and linguistic abilities to comprehend. A revision of SAPS 14A is offered as an illustration of a possible improvement to increase readability and, subsequently, better access to the mentioned rights.


Author(s):  
David Bruce

This article is concerned with the process of en masse recruitment implemented within the South African Police Service since 2002. As a result of this process the personnel strength of the SAPS has increased dramatically from 120 549 in 2002 to 199 345 in 2012, an increase of over 65%. A large proportion of SAPS personnel are now people who have joined since 1994 and particularly since 2002. En masse recruitment has in part addressed the legacy of apartheid by promoting racial and gender representativeness in the SAPS. In so doing it has facilitated entry into the civil service by a significant number of black, and particularly African,South Africans, thus contributing to ‘class formation’. At the same time the process does not ensure political non-partisanship on the part of the SAPS. It also has not necessarily contributed to ‘better policing’ in South Africa. While it may have increased the potential that the SAPS will enjoy legitimacy, this cannot be achieved by recruitment alone.


Author(s):  
Robert Mattes

Afrobarometer’s regular surveys of public attitudes toward governance, democracy and economics in 18 African countries shows that experiences of crime and concerns over safety in South Africa are indeed quite prevalent, but are by no means exceptional. People in some African countries are as, or even more, fearful than South Africans, and there are several countries in which people confront crime more frequently than do South Africans. The results also show that the South African Police Service, despite having higher levels of physical and human capital than its counterparts to the north, often lags well behind in terms of transparency and community relations.


2021 ◽  
Vol 56 (1) ◽  
pp. 92-108
Author(s):  
Guy Lamb

Since 1994 the South African Police Service (SAPS) has undertaken various efforts to build legitimacy in South Africa. Extensive community policing resources have been made available, and a hybrid community-oriented programme (sector policing) has been pursued. Nevertheless, public opinion data has shown that there are low levels of public trust in the police. Using Goldsmith’s framework of trust-diminishing police behaviours, this article suggests that indifference, a lack of professionalism, incompetence and corruption on the part of the police, particularly in high-crime areas, have eroded public trust in the SAPS. Furthermore, in an effort to maintain order, reduce crime and assert the authority of the state, the police have adopted militaristic strategies and practices, which have contributed to numerous cases of excessive use of force, which has consequently weakened police legitimacy in South Africa


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 102-122
Author(s):  
Jamil Ddamulira Mujuzi

In South Africa, persons or companies convicted of fraud or corruption or companies whose directors have been convicted are debarred from participating in bidding for government tenders. Although it is easy to establish whether or not a natural person has been convicted of an offence, because a certificate can be obtained from the South African Police Service to that effect, it is the opposite with juristic persons. This issue came up in the case of Namasthethu Electrical (Pty) Ltd v City of Cape Town and Another in which the appellant company was awarded a government tender although the company and its former director had been convicted of fraud and corruption. The purpose of this article is to analyse this judgment and show the challenges that the government is faced with when dealing with companies that have been convicted of offences that bid for government tenders. Because South Africa is in the process of enacting public procurement legislation, the Public Procurement Bill was published for comment in early 2020. One of the issues addressed in the Bill relates to debarring bidders who have been convicted of some offences from bidding for government tenders. Based on the facts of this case and legislation from other African countries, the author suggests ways in which the provisions of the Bill could be strengthened to address this issue.


2002 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anthony Minnaar

The use and implementation of public open street Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) surveillance systems in Central Business Districts (CBDs) in South Africa solely for the purpose of crime control (reducing street crime) or crime prevention (deterrence) has in South Africa been a relatively new intervention within the broader context of crime prevention programmes. One of the drawbacks to its implementation for this purpose has been its costs and the inability of the South African Police Service to fund such implementation in the light of other more pressing priorities and demands on its finances and resources. However, the initiative to start implementing and linking CCTV surveillance systems in CBDs in the major metropolitan cities of South Africa to local police services was taken in the mid-1990s by Business Against Crime of South Africa (BACSA). This article, using case study overviews from four South African CBD areas (Cape Town, Johannesburg, Pretoria (Tshwane) and Durban), traces CCTV use as crime control or prevention surveillance, how they were implemented, the rationale behind their implementation and the operationalising of them in terms of preventing street crime and its uses in other surveillance. In addition it also looks at this initiative from the perspective of the growth and commercialisation of the management of these services, and the co-operation and co-ordination structures in partnership with the South African Police Service (SAPS). Furthermore, it reviews the purported impact on the reduction of crime of these systems in CBDs and finally the application of public crime surveillance by the CCTV control room operators (private security) in co-operation with the police (response team) and the role it plays in the observation, recording, arrest and conviction of suspects.


Author(s):  
Sibusiso Masuku

South Africa’s high levels of violent crime have a significant effect on people’s lives. A review of the trends and risk factors associated with violent crime begs the question about who should be leading the effort to prevent violence? The South African Police Service currently has this responsibility – but is this appropriate? And which other departments should be playing a greater role?


2021 ◽  
Vol 10 ◽  
pp. 1029-1038
Author(s):  
Witness Maluleke ◽  

Residents of Limpopo (LIM) and KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) Province are witnessing higher rates of stock theft, with the inhabitants of the selected communities living in fear for the prevention of this scourge. This study explores the extent of this crime in the selected areas of LIM and KZN, considering contributory factors, determining the relationship between the South African Police Service Stock Theft Units (SAPS STUs) and other relevant stakeholders, as well as looking at existing strategies (And their failures and successes) in responding to this crime effectively. A qualitative research approach coupled with Non-probability: Purposive sampling was used in this study. The targeted population consisted of 113 participants. For data collections, Focus Group Discussions (FGDs), Key Informant Interviews (KIIs), and Observation Schedules were adopted. lack of appropriate preventative measures has led to rise of stock theft, it was, therefore, discovered that both the affected livestock farmers and members of the community lost confidence toward the police, Besides, the perspectives on stock theft prevention in LIM and KZN reflect a greater challenge, with inadequate solutions present, since the current preventative measures are ineffective. Thus, understanding stock theft phenomenon is critical to its prevention as the sector of livestock in South Africa is the contributory key to the value of the agricultural economy.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document