Pretoria - The fight against crime continues despite negative publicity and its impact on police officials, said the Ministry of Police.
"We are cognisant of the recent negative publicity and its impact on the morale of the police across the organisation. Our job however is not merely to be concerned about negative publicity or perceptions but our fundamental job is to deal with the issues that are being raised. While this is in process, we remain committed to fighting crime. The police are at war with criminals and that is on-going," said Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa.
Mthethwa, together with Deputy Minister Maggie Sotyu, met with police management on Sunday to discuss and review progress in the fight against crime while also looking at current challenges it faces.
The minister said there was a need to look beyond publicity and establish whether there were facts or merits that justified the negative perceptions.
"Based on that we then have to rectify any such wrongs if they in fact do exist. From the point of view of the management, they showed commitment to soldier on and ensuing that we live our philosophy of community policing of continuously bridging the gap between police and community," said the minister.
Mthethwa added that current investigations and disciplinary actions involving senior members of the South African Police Service (SAPS) do not and should not distract police or the public from the fight against crime.
"As a collective, we remain confident that we shall overcome the current challenges."
Government, including the police is subject to the rule of law and the intricacies of litigation. All parties concerned including the media and the public must allow these processes to unfold."
"While current cases and decisions are pending, the police remains focused on ensuring that all South Africans are and feel safe. The thousands of men and women in the police who are keeping our communities safe daily are unaffected by the cases under discussion," added Mthethwa.
