The South African Police Service (SAPS) has failed to bring in 5,500 new police recruits due to the cancellation of a R360 million medical assessment contract. The contract was between SAPS and Medicare24 Tshwane District, a company owned by Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala. The company was appointed to provide health risk management services, including pre-employment medical assessments and medical surveillance over a three-year period.
The cancellation of the contract has raised concerns about policing in the Western Cape. Lynn Phillips, secretary of the Cape Flats Safety Forum, expressed disappointment that applicants had gone through the recruitment process expecting to be employed by SAPS. She said the new recruits would have helped minimize gang violence and high crime rates in local communities.
Phillips criticized the police top brass for failing to address the situation. She emphasized that police are already under-resourced, particularly in terms of human capacity, which has a direct impact on local communities. Phillips called for immediate action to address the issue and reduce the high rate of serious and violent crimes in the Western Cape.
DA MP Nicholas Gotsell said the 5,500 missing police recruits were not just a statistic for families on the Cape Flats. He linked the issue to supply chain problems in SAPS, including the inability to provide rape kits to various units in the Western Cape. Gotsell argued that the lack of police officers has left communities living in fear, particularly in gang-related areas.
Gotsell questioned SAPS' promise to Parliament to deploy two police officers for every SANDF soldier deployed to fight gang violence. He pointed out that police stations are already understaffed, and it is unclear where the additional officers would come from. Gotsell criticized SAPS for failing to get the basics right, leaving communities to suffer.
A report released by SAPS found that Matlala's tender for these services was allegedly questionable from the beginning. The report alleged that Matlala was awarded the tender irregularly through collusive bidding with SAPS employees. An amount of R50,310,590.63 was allegedly paid irregularly to Matlala and has yet to be recovered.
The report also alleged that seven police officers who served on the Bid Evaluation Committee failed to conduct due diligence before Matlala was awarded the contract. The officers were accused of failing to prevent fronting during the bid for the contract, as they recommended Medicare24 Tshwane District despite Matlala's lack of experience in healthcare.
Key points
- The cancellation of the medical assessment contract has delayed the intake of 5,500 new police recruits.
- The delay has raised concerns about policing in the Western Cape, particularly in areas affected by gang violence and high crime rates.
- An investigation found that the tender awarded to Matlala's company was allegedly questionable and involved collusive bidding with SAPS employees.
