In its Committee Meeting today, members of the Portfolio Committee on Community Safety expressed concerns over the alleged use of excessive force by JMPD Officers whilst restraining an alleged drunk driver to draw blood samples from her. The incident is alleged to have taken place at the Douglasdale Police Station over the past weekend.
Members of the Committee acknowledged and welcomed the decision by the City of Johannesburg to institute an internal investigation into the matter and called for the City to take decisive and swift action should it be established that the officers acted against the law.
The Committee calls on law enforcement officers to be cautions not to infringe on the rights of civilians while performing their duties as some actions may be viewed as a serious violation of human rights as entrenched in the Constitution of the country. The Committee further calls on civilians to cooperate with law enforcement officers when they have reasonable grounds to suspect that they have acted against the law.
One of the key mandates of the Portfolio Committee on Community Safety is to provide oversight on the work of law enforcement agencies in the Province and hold these agencies accountable to ensure that residents of Gauteng are safe.
The Committee will await the outcome of the internal investigation by the City and whether appropriate action is taken should the officers be found to be in the wrong. The Committee will further write to the MEC for Community Safety in the Province to urge her to monitor and ensure the speedy finalisation of this investigation.
ISSUED BY GPL’S MEDIA SERVICES ON BEHALF OF THE CHAIRPERSON OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON COMMUNITY SAFETY, HONOURABLE MAPITI MATSENA
For interview requests with the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee please contact: Mr Thebe Khumalo on 011 498 5948 / 072 266 1021 email: TKhumalo@gpl.gov.za
