A resident prays for protection and an end to crime during a protest in Kariega, Nelson Mandela Bay, this week. (Photo: Nkosazana Ngwadla) 
“We don’t want crime. Schools and clinics should not be closed because of crime. We love you, we don’t want to see you dying. It’s not normal for children to be used to gunshots,” Major General Vuyisile Ncata, the police district commissioner for Nelson Mandela Bay, told Kariega residents at a crime imbizo this week.
The South African Police Service (SAPS), he said, “has plans, and they are being implemented. We have to all work together to keep our communities safe, and we will take back our region, one community at a time.”
However, he continued, there was not enough funding to implement the Cooperation Agreement signed in August 2024 by the then mayor, Gary van Niekerk — now charged with crimes relating to the misuse of municipal money — and the minister of police, Senzo Mchunu, who is currently on leave amid allegations of links to organised crime.
Read more: Hundreds of crime victims and community leaders turn up to speak to Minister Mchunu
Ncata told the crowd that “a lack of resources” was hampering the implementation of the agreement. This included a “lack of boots on the ground”.
What the agreement promised
At the signing of the agreement in 2024, Mchunu said, “It is unacceptable that Gqeberha, the heart of this metro, has earned the tragic distinction of being ranked ninth among the murder capitals of the world. These are not just statistics — each number represents a life lost, a family devastated and a community shaken.”
Read more: NMB murder hotspots — Five areas among the worst in SA
“To tackle this, we will invest in technology as a powerful enabler in our fight. A data-driven approach will be employed to identify violent crime hotspots and guide the allocation of resources. Modern tools will also be deployed to assist our police in investigating and solving crimes, while preventative measures will be strengthened.”
The agreement introduced community-driven initiatives — the strengthening of community policing forums and the promotion of neighbourhood safety initiatives. Yet, as councillor Gustav Rautenbach has explained, none of these initiatives is going anywhere as the metro’s Safety and Security Committee is not sitting.
Neighbourhood watch steps in
The head of the Algoa Park Neighbourhood Watch, Mario Zeelie, said: “Some nights my house looks like a satellite police station. I have more people coming to my front door than those who visit the station.”
Zeelie said there were times when the police only had one vehicle available to service the entire precinct.
“This results in a lack of faith in the police in Algoa Park. The members working there really try to do their jobs, but they are severely limited by the resources available to them.”
Nelson Mandela Bay Mayor Babalwa Lobishe promised to deal with the issue of the metro’s scarcity of security cameras, but very little has come of that, apart from Lobishe launching an online petition, which can be signed here. Meanwhile, the neighbouring Kouga municipality uses drones to fight crime.
Portfolio Committee on Police
This year, the Portfolio Committee on Police received a petition from residents of Nelson Mandela Bay’s Northern Areas, who pointed out that the problems plaguing Nelson Mandela Bay were systemic and echoed across South Africa.
Following this meeting, the committee resolved to request further information from the SAPS on the status and resourcing of the Anti-Gang Unit (AGU) and Crime Intelligence in the Eastern Cape, as well as the police’s plans to improve the quality of investigations, prioritise forensic analysis and enforce discipline in their ranks.
Read more: Police portfolio committee asks for urgent bail policy reform for gang crimes
The committee said, “The SAPS must urgently address staffing, equipment, and capacity gaps in the Eastern Cape’s AGU and Crime Intelligence structures, specifically in Nelson Mandela Bay.”
A progress report was due on 31 July, but the Democratic Alliance spokesperson for safety and security in the province, Yusuf Cassim, said that they had not received one.
At the anti-crime rally in Kariega, Ncata said he had met with Lobishe and agreed on three major workstreams that should be prioritised: gender-based violence, technology and infrastructure.
“Gender-based violence is an urgent concern, and intelligence-led operations should be conducted in fighting it. Then, security cameras should be installed in townships. Cameras play a proactive role in crime prevention. Lastly, the broken infrastructure should be repaired quicker, because it also adds to crime.”
Anti-crime protest
Just over a year after Mchunu introduced his grand plan, residents of Kariega and surrounding areas organised a protest against crime this week, declaring: “Dit is nou genoeg. [This is now enough.]”
Residents, schoolchildren and staff, nurses and various organisations took to the streets. Protesters wore black clothing, while learners and hospital staff showed up in their uniforms. In a show of commitment, taxis and buses halted operation during the march, and primary schools were closed.
At the protest, Memela Jadu, who lives in KwaNobuhle and works at a supermarket in Kariega, said that every morning and evening when she travels to and from work she prays: “God, please protect me from your other children who mean to harm me; may they not succeed in destroying my life, but if it is your will that they rob me, please at least keep me alive, for the sake of my children.”
Community leader Prince Mejane spoke about crime in the Joe Slovo community.
“When you enter Joe Slovo, there is … a tollgate where innocent residents have to pay a fee before entering the neighbourhood — their own neighbourhood. Not only that, there are vacant homes in Joe Slovo because people have resorted to leaving their homes, scared for their lives. Now, you tell me, is that fair?”
Mejane handed Ncata a memorandum written by community members and signed by Ward 49 councillor Georgen Miggels.
Ncata accepted and signed the memorandum and encouraged community members to report crimes, even anonymously.
Another community leader, Thamsanqa Nkevu, said rape was prevalent in the area.
Read more: Spate of schoolgirl murders in Nelson Mandela Bay sparks call for collaborative action
“Most of the rape cases do not go far because victims are often told that their cases will not go anywhere. They are told this either by police or by detectives. Right now, there is a case of a young girl who was raped by four other youths. These youths are known, but there are no arrests.”
Not even the courts are safe
Just hours before the people of Kariega took to the streets, shots were fired at a prosecutor and his family while they were in their car, in Tiryville, Kariega.
Read more: Another Nelson Mandela Bay prosecutor targeted in brazen shooting
The prosecutor and his family escaped unscathed, but the incident bore an alarming similarity to the shooting that claimed the life of Gqeberha prosecutor Tracy Brown last month.
Read more: Gqeberha prosecutor gunned down outside her home in ‘planned hit’ emphasises high stakes
And if Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Mmamoloko Kubayi’s visit to the New Brighton Magistrates’ Court on Thursday is anything to go on, not even the courts are safe in Nelson Mandela Bay.
Kubayi said resources would have to be diverted to improve security measures at the facility.
After the murder of Brown, Kubayi asked for a full assessment of safety and security measures in place at the court building. While a report had been compiled, Kubayi said none of the findings had been actioned, prompting her unannounced visit to the court.
“I did not want a fake representation of what happens at court. I wanted to see the public’s experience; hence, I did not warn anyone of this visit beforehand.”
Kubayi said basic measures had been neglected, mentioning a lack of security cameras and a shortage of security personnel.
“It should not be necessary for me to visit courts to see where there are shortcomings. There are regional and local managers in positions to report these issues to me. We will have to take a look at their performance agreements and their accountability.”
Shortly before Kubayi visited the court, the police said they had launched a manhunt after a 47-year-old woman was gunned down in the area at about 8am. SAPS spokesperson Brigadier Nobuntu Gantana said the woman was shot while waiting outside a property in New Brighton.
Also setting residents on edge are the many kidnappings in the metro. Over the past 12 months, there have been at least 13 kidnappings in Nelson Mandela Bay, most motivated by ransom demands.
When releasing the provincial crime statistics in July, the MEC for community safety, Xolile Nqatha, said kidnappings had increased from 14 cases in the second quarter of 2024 to 35 cases in the second quarter of 2025.
This week, two arrests were made in connection with the kidnappings.
Read more: Finally – Hawks arrest suspects in latest Nelson Mandela Bay kidnapping
In response to the kidnappings, the DA’s Cassim said he would table a motion in the Eastern Cape legislature to compel the MEC to immediately engage with the SAPS provincial commissioner and the minister of police to establish a permanent 24-hour joint operations centre in Nelson Mandela Bay led by the Hawks, SAPS, metro police and the National Prosecuting Authority. DM