SA's worst police stations named
2007-11-26 14:43
Cape Town - Manenberg police station in Cape Town is one of the best-run in the country, while those at Verena in Mpumalanga, KwaMashu in KwaZulu-Natal, and Inyibiba and Mdantsane in the Eastern Cape are among the worst.
These are the findings of a Democratic Alliance (DA) study highlighting the good, the bad, and - in some cases - the ugly side of SA's police stations and the service they offer. 
The purpose of the study, DA safety and security spokesperson Dianne Kohler-Barnard told a media briefing at Parliament on Monday, was to "highlight the reality of the conditions of some police stations".
Despite assurances given by top police service management, many stations were not properly resourced, managed, or equipped, she said.
Among the main findings of the study was that the efficiency of a police station was mainly a function of the gumption, resourcefulness and leadership skills displayed by its station commander.
According to a study document tabled at the briefing, the three holding cells at Verena police station were in a "filthy condition", police officers did not have their own bullet-proof vests, there was a shortage of firearms, and insufficient vehicles to operate adequately.
'Racial tension'
At KwaMashu, there was, among other things, a "critical" shortage of office space, detectives had completed no specialised training, there was a shortage of firearms and handcuffs, no first aid kits for vehicles, no roadblock equipment, a shortage of cellphones and vehicles, and no safekeeping facilities for criminal dockets. 
Further, there were "indications of serious racial and inter-personal tension" at the station. 
Kohler-Barnard told journalists that police members at the station who spoke to her during her visit were "seriously reprimanded" afterwards.
She also noted the facility had - according to the Independent Complaints Directorate - had five deaths in its holding cells in the past year. 
At Inyibiba, according to the study document, there were no handcuffs at the station, a shortage of bulletproof vests, no handheld radios or first aid kits for vehicles. The station's detectives had to share three cellphones.
Kohler-Barnard noted 74 police members at the station had faced disciplinary hearings in the past year, "mainly for being drunk on duty".
At Mdantsane, the ceiling of the commissioner's office was being held up by metal props, while only fax facilities were available, with many of the available computers not connected.
The station had a conviction rate of "about four to five percent", and its members were facing 292 disciplinary actions, mainly, Kohler-Barnard said, for "dereliction of duty, including being drunk at work".
In contrast to what she described as the "worst police stations in South Africa" was Manenberg.
Good leadership
"This station has been pulled up by its boot straps," the study document notes, and is one at which any officer would wish to work.
"The station is spotless, the staff are motivated, and the insistence on the highest standards is paying dividends. No infraction is tolerated, and this professional attitude has the station working like a well-oiled machine," it says.
Kohler-Barnard stressed the study's finding that good leadership was essential.
"Where you have good leadership, a station runs like clockwork... a good station commander can really turn a police station around," she said.
