ASSOCIATION NEWS
SASA UPDATE
Person getting tested for Covid-19.
Update from SASA August has been relatively uneventful in the private security industry, but there are some matters that must be highlighted. From the desk of Tony Botes, SASA National Administrator.
C
ivil unrest Following the incarceration of ex-president Jacob Zuma, there were protest actions, mainly in KwaZulu-Natal, which were reportedly used by criminal elements to commit wholesale looting of shopping centres, warehouses and freestanding shops. These incidents occurred largely in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, though there were other instances throughout the country. The South African Police Service (SAPS) were, unfortunately, not prepared for the magnitude of this criminality and was caught napping, hence the deployment of
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SECURITY FOCUS AFRICA AUGUST 2021
the SANDF (South African National Defense Force) to support them. Despite directives and circulars recently issued by the SAPS National Commissioner and PSIRA (Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority), which strictly prohibited private security companies from carrying out the duties of the SAPS, we were approached by PSIRA with a query from the Minister of Police as to why the private security companies were not assisting the police during this time of civil unrest and looting. The fact of the matter was that security companies were highly active throughout this period, protecting their contracted
clients and the communities – mainly residential – where their clients were situated. Hats off to those companies and security officers who went ‘above and beyond’ their contracted responsibilities, often at great risk to themselves. Unfortunately, a number of security companies, again mainly in KwaZuluNatal, far exceeded their legal mandates, which resulted in a number of arrests and a massive confiscation of their firearms for ballistic testing. I am happy to confirm that no SASA member companies were part of those (illegal) actions.
securityfocusafrica.com
