The Gauteng Provincial Legislature’s Portfolio Committee on Community Safety has expressed serious concern over the suspension of more than 300 Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department (EMPD) officers following their alleged involvement in an illegal strike in March this year.
The strike caused significant disruptions to traffic flow across Ekurhuleni and impacted access to OR Tambo International Airport. While the Committee acknowledged the City of Ekurhuleni’s right to enforce disciplinary action for serious misconduct, it warned that the mass suspensions could severely compromise public safety and service delivery.
“The mass suspension of these officers poses a significant risk to public safety, traffic management, and the enforcement of municipal by-laws,” the Committee said in a statement released on Tuesday.
The Committee further noted that the sudden drop in law enforcement capacity could leave residents vulnerable and aggravate existing challenges in maintaining order both on the roads and within communities across the metro.
In response, the Committee has urged the City of Ekurhuleni to implement immediate contingency plans to minimise the disruption. One recommendation included mobilising temporary support from neighbouring municipalities under the inter-municipal agreement that permits metro police and traffic officers to operate across jurisdictions for crime prevention and traffic control purposes.
Additionally, the Committee called on the City to resolve the ongoing labour dispute as a matter of urgency to restore essential policing services.
“A prolonged impasse between the municipality and its employees will only deepen service delivery challenges and undermine public safety,” it cautioned.
The Portfolio Committee confirmed that it would continue to monitor the situation closely and remains committed to ensuring that community safety is not compromised anywhere in Gauteng.
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