Article by Kotie Geldenhuys

Photos provided by Don Govender

The Durban Metro Police Service was the first Metro Police Service that was established in South Africa in terms of the SAPS Amendment Act 83 of 1998. But the history of the Durban Metropolitan Police Service can be traced back as far as 1854, when a city police agency was created under that year’s Municipal Ordinance. The city police service was redesigned in 1885 and the Durban Borough Police came under the control of the City Council of Durban. When Durban attained the status of a city in 1935, it was renamed the Durban City Police, which made Durban unique in comparison with other cities in the country. A year later, with the inclusion of Durban into the area of jurisdiction of the South African National Police Force, (South African Police (SAP)), the Durban City Police had to address city by_laws and traffic control. Then, in 1998, the government came with the idea to amalgamate the traffic and city police and in May 1999 the traffic police from Durban, Pinetown and Amanzimtoti combined to form the Durban Metro Police Service (DMPS).

The metro police has a broader mandate than the former traffic departments. After it had been decided to adopt the uniform of the city police and the rank structure had been sorted out, the Durban Metropolitan Police Service became fully functional on 1 June 2000. The Durban Metro Police was the only municipal police service in South Africa, until March 2001 when the Johannesburg Metro Police Department was established.

The work_load of the DMPS is far greater than that of the former Durban City Police. Not only do they have to enforce the Road Traffic Act, they also face the challenge to enforce municipal by_laws and initiate crime prevention projects.

The three statutory functions of metro police services are:

Metro police members have legal powers of arrest and search and seizure within their area of jurisdiction (metropolitan borders). They do not have powers to investigate crime and have to hand over criminal suspects to the South Africa Police Service for investigation and prosecution.

The rest of the team are:

These people are responsible to set an example and give advice to the members at ground level. Approximately 1200 people are employed by the Durban Metro Police Service.

In order to be closer to the community, the DMPS has set up five regional offices in Verulam, Gillitts, Pinetown, Chatsworth and the CBD. Besides these offices there are also smaller CSCs (Community Service Centres) as well as satellite CSCs in the major areas such as Umlazi, Pinetown and KwaMashu. The CSCs of the DMPS respond to complaints and report them to the SAPS. At the CSC the public can get assistance in a variety of areas, ranging from submissions to the department to enquiries about the department. Not only do they deal with cases such as stolen vehicles, domestic violence and theft, they also act as an information centre for members of the public. The CSC serves as the first line of contact between the metro police member and the public. The Metro Police’s CSC is different from the SAPS’ CSC in that it cannot open a case docket but must pass on the information to the SAPS CSC, where applicable. CSCs of the DMPS are open 24/7.

The area that the DMPS is responsible for stretches from Cato Ridge in the west to Tongaat in the north and Umkomaas in the south, an area of approximately 2500 km2, with a population of more than 3 million people. Many of the people in the city live in informal settlements or in traditional dwellings. Some parts of the metropolitan areas are not easily accessible by road, creating particular problems for effective policing.

The Durban Metro Police Service falls under the eThekwini Council.

The DMPS members are constantly exposed to serious accidents and violent crime scenes and therefore counselling is important. The members also have to chase after criminals and dodge bullets, but they remain accountable for their actions, for example when a suspect is shot. Crowd control, especially during special events, is another duty of metro police members.

The DMPS works closely with the SAPS and supports the SAPS in combating and responding to crime. Metro police members are also responsible for 24 hour patrols.

The metro police go to the community and inform them about their work, recruitment etc. Sen Supt Tyala said: "The members feel more accepted as the communities get to know them and start to cooperate with them."

The DMPS has good work relationships with the business community in the city such as hotels and restaurants. Due to the many tourists visiting Durban, the metro police members do regular foot and bicycle patrol, as said above.

During disasters such as with the unusually high springtide that was experienced in KwaZulu_Natal earlier in 2007 and the fire at the Seaboard Hotel, the DMPS was responsible for crowd control and for closing off the affected roads.

Providing a municipal policing service 24 hours a day and maintaining high visibility in the Central Business District to meet the growing expectations of the community for visible policing across the entire metro area, are not easy. But while we were driving through the streets of Durban we could spot several DMPS vehicles and members and it seemed that the DMPS is living up to expectations.

To be in line with the SAPS, the MPS also has a rank structure ranging from constable to director. The two new ranks that have been introduced in the MPS are captain and director. Sen Supt Tyala said that members have to go through the ranks and that further study gives them the much needed credits that could help them when applying for a post in a higher rank. The positions of Chief and Deputy Chief are contract appointments.

Recruitment is done according to the policy and posts are advertised in the media and internally.

Durban Metro police members are trained at the training academy in Pinetown. Constables do a 9 month training course:

3 months for policing and 6 months for traffic. Approximately 50 students are allowed per course. After they have left the college they do foot beat for a year. "This is the place where they obtain the most experience," said Sen Supt Tyala.

Training does not stop once the members have completed their college training. Firearms training, street survival courses etc form part of their ongoing training. They are also trained in workplace skills where the focus is placed on empowering them to develop their own career path. The members are also encouraged to study further in policing at institutions such as TUT, Lyceum etc to better their qualifications. The metro council pays for these courses subject to the student passing. As the Durban Metro Police Service believes in going the extra mile, they make an effort to do skills development with their members.

Authorised officers undergo a 6_week training course, which the businesses of the city of Durban sponsor, but these officers still fall under the Metro Police Service’s authority. These members work at the airport, handle informal trading fines etc.

The DMPS was approached by Lipco _ Law for All who wants to offer an incentive for hard work. This came after this company had seen some of the success stories of the Durban Metro Police Service in the media. The discussions are not yet finalised to determine what the form of the incentives will be.

The DMPS provides a wide range of services and they have the following units:

A CCTV system was developed by the Durban City Police and is now managed and controlled by the DMPS. CCTV cameras are installed in selected areas prone to criminal activity like the beach front and densely populated business areas in the city. The CCTV has been expanded to include Pinetown.

Operation Night Club was held earlier in April 2007 and the Metro Police together with the SAPS achieved good successes. They focused on drugs provided to youth in areas such as Chatsworth, the CBD and Wentworth. The police recovered firearms, cocaine and mandrax to the value of R100 000. The drug bust operations by the Metro Police are ongoing.

During March 2007 liquor to the value of more than R61 000 was confiscated. During this operation the DMPS also looked at liquor licences.

This week was held before the Easter weekend and the focus fell on the wearing of safety belts, alcohol, the wearing of helmets, roadworthiness of vehicles etc. The DMPS arrested 160 drivers who were under the influence of alcohol and 100 minibus taxis were confiscated as they were found unroad_worthy.

The Durban Metro Police Service treats road safety as a continuous issue and various pamphlets on road issues are distributed frequently.

The DMPS works as a cluster with other law enforcement agencies in Durban such as the SAPS, the Department of Justice and the magistrate’s offices. There is no form of competition between the different law enforcement agencies as all work together towards one goal _ safety and security.

Although the Metro Police and SAPS share responsibility for crime prevention, this law enforcement agency does not investigate criminal cases. According to the statutes regulating the two bodies, investigation remains the domain of the SAPS. As said earlier, the Metro Police can make arrests but then they hand over the case to the SAPS for investigation.

During our visit to the DMPS we learned a lot about the oldest metro police service in the country. We noticed that they care about the Durban community as well as the tourists in this busy holiday city and will give their utmost best to ensure the safety of everyone in the eThekwini Metro.