President Cyril Ramaphosa has hailed police teams across the country for their sterling efforts in fighting crime.
Ramaphosa said 4,000 more personnel will be recruited to work in the police detective services, and the integration of artificial intelligence will help with fraud detection at the South African Revenue Service (SARS).
Speaking during the State Of the Nation Address (SONA) on Thursday, Ramaphosa said police continue to work with law enforcement agencies to dismantle organised crime syndicates and combat financial and violent crimes.
He said police are working with municipalities and communities, especially in high crime provinces, to fight the scourge.
"We are intensifying Operation Shanela, which has been successful in arresting suspects, recovering firearms and seizing stolen vehicles. We must tackle the scourge of gun violence that has plagued our society for decades. I have asked the Minister and the National Commissioner of Police to prioritise reducing gun-related crime and violence. This includes preventing the diversion of firearms into the illicit market and recovering illegal firearms in circulation," he said.
Police spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Vincent Mukhathi, said that through Operation Shanela efforts, the South African Police Service (SAPS) arrested 12,251 suspects between January 27 and February 2 in countrywide operations
Ramaphosa said based on international evidence and the country's experience, this is the most effective way to reduce overall violent crime.
He said government is working on adopting surveillance, analytics and smart policing solutions for modern law enforcement.
"We have seen the value of technology in fighting crime. By using AI in its fraud risk detection and verification work, SARS has prevented the leakage of over R95 billion in impermissible refunds, recovered R20 billion in revenue and dismantled an illicit tobacco and gold scheme.
Gender-based violence
"We continue to work across society to end the violence that is perpetrated against women. We have promulgated the National Council on Gender-Based Violence and Femicide Act, establishing a national structure to oversee a coordinated response to this crisis," Ramaphosa said.
He said government will ensure that the council is fully functional and properly resourced.
"We continue to strengthen support to victims of gender-based violence. There are now 65 Thuthuzela Care Centres across the country. Out of 52 districts in the country, 44 have GBV shelters. All police stations in the country have victim friendly services, and another 16 sexual offences courts will be established in the next financial year," the president said.
Corruption
"We want a nation that is free of corruption," Ramaphosa said adding that last year, the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption was established as a permanent entity within the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).
He said this is dedicated to investigating and prosecuting high-level corruption cases.
"We will ensure that the Directorate is fully resourced and has access to the information that it needs to prosecute state capture cases and hold those responsible to account. We are establishing a world-class digital forensics lab to support the investigation of complex corruption and financial crime with cutting edge tools and expertise.
"We are making steady progress in the implementation of the recommendations of the State Capture Commission, including signing into law several legislative reforms," Ramaphosa said.
Special Investigating Unit successes
Ramaphosa noted that the Special Investigating Unit and Asset Forfeiture Unit report that over R10 billion has been recovered in state capture related cases.
He said this year, the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development will report on the review of the anti-corruption architecture by the National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council.
This, he added, is expected to streamline legislation, eradicate the duplication of mandates and foster greater cooperation between law enforcement agencies.
"We will finalise the whistleblower protection framework and introduce the Whistleblower Protections Bill in Parliament during this financial year. This year, we will strengthen South Africa’s system to combat money laundering and terror financing with further legislative and system improvements.
"To secure our removal from the international Financial Action Task Force grey list, we have made significant progress in addressing the weaknesses identified in our law enforcement system, with 16 out of 22 action items fully addressed. We want a nation that is at peace with the world," Ramaphosa said.
IOL