Parliament\ufffdThe Portfolio Committee on Police is seriously concerned by the violent crimes committed with firearms that are possibly illegal, and calls on the police to fast-track investigations.<\/P>
Four people were shot and killed in two separate incidents over the weekend in Cape Town, including a ward councillor for Bloekombos. Another councillor was shot and killed last week in Umlazi, KwaZulu-Natal.<\/P>
In May this year, the portfolio committee in a media statement recommended that the police prioritise five steps, in order to effectively deal with the proliferation of illegal firearms:<\/P>
\tChannel more resources to the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation’s specialised unit focussing on illegal firearms.<\/P>
\tImplement more projects and network operations initiated by crime intelligence to deal with gun smuggling by criminal syndicates.<\/P>
\tEnforce stricter control measures in South African Police Services (Saps) stores and stations, and also in the arms supply of the South African National Defence Force.<\/P>
\tEnsure closer cooperation with other South African Development Community countries to deal with the proliferation and inflow of high calibre automatic firearms in the region.<\/P>
\tConduct a full-scale review of the Firearms Registry turn-around strategy and a forensic audit of high-risk areas in the licencing of firearms, as well as permits and authorisations.<\/P>
The committee is concerned by the steady growth in the illegal firearm pool. More than 800 firearms were lost or stolen from police members and more than 18 000 firearms were lost by members of the public or stolen in the 2017\/18 financial year.<\/P>
The Chairperson of the committee, Mr Francois Beukman, has called on gun-owning individuals and law-enforcement agencies to ensure that firearms are stored safely at all times.<\/P>
He extended heartfelt condolences to the families of the deceased and called for thorough investigations and the arrest of the perpetrators.<\/P>
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Source: Parliament of the Republic of South Africa<\/P>
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