WC govt blames national govt for failing to intervene in curbing ongoing violence in province

CAPE TOWN - The Western Cape government on Thursday blamed national government for failing to intervene in curbing ongoing shootings and gang violence in the province.

Members of the Western Cape provincial parliament debated the subject in the provincial legislature on Thursday.

A statistic presented in the legislature shows more than 30 people were murdered in the province last month.

Democratic Alliance (DA) Western Cape chief whip, Gillion Bosman, addressed members of the provincial legislature (MPLs), questioning why the state had not intervened to curb shootings and gang violence in the province.

Bosman criticised the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the parole board for their failure to protect citizens, while also pressing national government to strengthen detective services and policing resources in the province.

"The South African Police Service and the parole board are failing in their mandates. The one cannot prevent crime without sufficient officers and sufficient resources. The other cannot claim to protect society when it releases high-risk offenders into communities already so under siege."

African National Congress (ANC) MPL Benson Ngqentsu said the Western Cape government's failure to develop communities and the deliberate destabilisation of police intelligence were to blame for the ongoing shootings.