Durban’s top police unit, the Flying Squad, is in shambles, with some members of the squad alleging there are only two vehicles available for use on each shift, making fighting crime a nightmare.
The vehicles are meant to service not just central Durban, but south Durban, Hammarsdale, Winkelspruit and Ballito.
Members of the squad allege that some of the vehicles are unroadworthy and are not being maintained. They also claim that some cop bosses are using the vehicles to run private errands.
The situation is so bad that members of the unit say they are unable to carry out their duties effectively and fear for their safety when responding to emergency calls in available vehicles.
“There are 15 policemen who go on duty each shift, but there are only two vehicles available. Does this make any sense? We come to work hoping to catch brazen criminals and fight crime, but the unit is so under-resourced that we cannot even do our jobs properly,” said one policeman, who could not be named because he is not authorised to speak to the media.
“Last year we had a similar problem and it was resolved: they got new vehicles for us, although they are still not up to standard.”
Police spokesman Major Thulani Zwane admitted there were problems within the squad and said they would be addressed.
He could not provide details as to how many vehicles the fleet had for “security reasons”, and he gave the same reason when refusing to divulge the number of policemen on each shift. He could not respond to allegations regarding vehicles being used privately because he wasn’t aware of them.
“We are looking into the problems faced by this unit (and) the matter is being investigated. The members of the Flying Squad are currently working with the resources that are available to them,” he said.
He could not comment on whether or not there were plans to get new vehicles to improve the fleet next year.
Another Flying Squad member told the Sunday Tribune that there was a fleet of more than 20 vehicles, most of which are parked in the garage at the Durban Central station. Most of them cannot be used because they are so poorly maintained.
“In order to chase criminals, you need to be faster than them. Our cars need to be upgraded on a regular basis and need to be maintained and serviced.
“The unit is using Ford STs and Golf 5 GTIs. These are not good enough, where are the Golf 7s?
“Does it make sense to chase a criminal when he’s driving a car that is faster and (better) maintained than yours?
“Nobody cares about this unit and soon they’re going to regret it. Our jobs are becoming difficult considering the limited resources we have, but we are still trying our hardest to fight crime,” he said.
Sunday Tribune