Calls for the expansion of municipal policing powers have gained renewed momentum in the Western Cape after outgoing provincial police commissioner Thembisile Patekile publicly endorsed giving capable municipal law enforcement agencies greater responsibility in crime-fighting efforts.
Western Cape Premier Alan Winde welcomed the remarks, saying the province has long argued that municipal law enforcement agencies should be granted additional investigative and intelligence-related powers to support the South African Police Service (SAPS).
The call has now also been reinforced by Western Cape MEC for Police Oversight and Community Safety, Anroux Marais, who says the success of the Law Enforcement Advancement Plan (LEAP) demonstrates that local government law enforcement can play a larger role in tackling crime.
According to Marais, murder rates in LEAP deployment areas consistently outperformed the rest of the province during all four reporting quarters of the 2025/26 financial year, recording larger reductions in murders and maintaining downward trends even when provincial figures moved in the opposite direction.
She said recent LEAP operational results further support the case for expanded powers.
Between 27 April and 31 May this year, LEAP officers searched more than 24,800 people and 1,180 houses, conducted 225 roadblocks, searched over 2,500 vehicles, carried out more than 2,500 hotspot patrols, participated in 601 joint operations with SAPS and made 1,046 arrests. Officers also confiscated 15 firearms, 99 rounds of ammunition, significant quantities of drugs, illicit liquor and stolen property.
Marais argued that allowing municipal law enforcement agencies to investigate certain categories of offences arising from these arrests would reduce the burden on SAPS detectives, many of whom are carrying excessive caseloads.
She said offences such as drunken driving, common assault, petty drug crimes and minor property-related offences could be handled at the municipal level, allowing SAPS detectives to focus on gang violence, murders, organised crime syndicates and extortion networks.
Cape Town Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, JP Smith, echoed those sentiments, describing Patekile’s comments as validation of years of advocacy by the City and the Western Cape Government.
In a social media post, Smith said the City had intentionally built its own investigative capacity by recruiting experienced professionals and developing specialised training programmes through its Public Safety Training College.
He said the City’s more than 6,000 law enforcement personnel are increasingly equipped not only to make arrests but also to assist with investigations, compile quality case dockets and support successful prosecutions.
Smith, however, rejected suggestions that municipal agencies had weakened SAPS by recruiting experienced investigators, arguing that the City had simply filled advertised positions with qualified candidates who wanted to contribute to its public safety mission.
Both Marais and Smith said greater collaboration between national, provincial and local law enforcement agencies would strengthen the criminal justice system and improve public confidence by ensuring that arrests are followed by effective investigations and successful prosecutions.
Marais has now urged Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia to fast-track discussions and legislative reforms needed to expand policing powers to municipalities that have demonstrated the necessary capacity, professionalism and accountability.
She said communities cannot afford further delays as the government seeks new ways to address persistent violent crime in the province.
