Harrismith – Additional Public Order Policing (POP) members are being deployed to different parts of KwaZulu-Natal and Mthatha in the Eastern Cape ahead of elections on Wednesday.
The deployment will bolster law enforcement agencies and intensify crime-combatting efforts in the two provinces.
SA Police Service National Commissioner General Fannie Masemola announced the deployment in Harrismith on Monday during a send-off parade of more than 700 POP officers.
He said the officers will add to the existing capacity of members currently deployed in these provinces, to ensure that voting takes place in a safe and secure environment.
During his address, General Masemola gave the men and women in blue marching orders to ensure they prevent and combat any acts of criminality and protect the rights of South Africans to vote in a peaceful environment.
He confirmed that police mobilised maximum resources to combat the lawlessness, which included the blocking of roads in Mthatha in the Eastern Cape.
Police have arrested five people who had attempted to block roads leading to the Mthatha Airport.
“We are sending you off to maintain law and order. No disruptions and acts of criminality should take place under your watch,” said General Masemola.
“We are sending you out there to protect the constitutional right of South Africans and the integrity of the election process.”
The Co-chair of the NATJOINTS, Lieutenant General Tebello Mosikili attended the send-off parade.
General Mosikili urged POP members to execute their duties within the ambit of the law.
