The South African Policing Union has rubbished remarks attributed to Police Minister Bheki Cele saying that police officers will not be allowed to take leave from December 5 until the end of January next year in a bid to boost law enforcement over the festive season.
PRETORIA – The South African Policing Union (Sapu) has rubbished remarks attributed to Police Minister Bheki Cele saying police officers will not be allowed to take leave from December 5 until the end of January next year in a bid to boost law enforcement over the festive season, often accompanied with a high crime rate.
“Unilaterally to come and say no police officer will go on leave, that is irresponsible, unlawful and irrational. Policing always goes on. Maybe this is his first festive season, but he will come across our members on holiday at the beaches. They will go and greet him, saying ‘hi minister, we are on leave even though you said we are not supposed to go on leave’,” Sapu national spokesperson Lesiba Thobakgale told broadcaster Newzroom Afrika.
He said the remarks made by Cele had upset the union.
“We are not happy with the pronouncement made by the minister during the safe festive season national launch in Thohoyandou, Limpopo, where he gave instruction to the national (police) commissioner that there will be no police officer who will go on leave during this festive season.
“It is clear that the minister is treading where he is not supposed to be going. We are saying, members (police officers) who, at the beginning of the year submitted their leave plan, because it is a requirement within the SAPS and there is no specific period where you would be told that your leave plan should not include December,” said Thobakgale.
“Those who have their leave plans submitted, they included December, those whose leaves have been approved … they will go on leave. We are giving that assurance to our members, and we are saying to the minister he must leave the administrative part (of SAPS) to the national commissioner (General Fannie Masemola). He is the commander in chief within the SAPS who deals with the administrative part and the conditions of service.”
Thobakgale said futher that Cele gets carried away when addressing the media.
“We are saying to him, the minister should stop grandstanding when he sees the media because it looks like when he sees the media his head starts to think about other things. He even goes overboard, speaking about things that touch the lives of our members.
“We are saying, our members will go on leave – whether the minister likes it or not.
“We are warning the national commissioner, that he must not comply with that unlawful instruction. The instruction issued by the minister is an illegal instruction. If the national commissioner will try to implement that instruction, we will challenge it to the letter.”
Thobakgale insisted that if given space, Masemola would implement a festive season plan, boosting law enforcement over the period but also accommodating deserving police officers who duly applied to be on leave, to take a break from their demanding work.
