Lack of community participation in the fight against stock theft in Dr. Pixley ka Isaka Seme Municipality, South Africa: What went wrong?

Abstract

The South African Police Services (SAPS) has a constitutional responsibility to prevent, combat, and investigate crime that would naturally occur within communities. It therefore stands to reason that, if the police are to fullfil this responsibility, community members should be involved. This paper examines the phenomenon of lack of community involvement in the fight against stock theft in Dr. Pixley ka Isaka Seme Municipality, Mpumalanga Province. To achieve this objective, it was necessary to first determine the extent to which community in the Dr. Pixley ka Isaka Seme Municipality is involved in the fight against of stock theft. A qualitative research approach was adopted for this study with the use of semi-structured in-depth interviews to collect data. The sample consisted of 22 participants selected through purposive sampling, who included farmers, herdsmen, Community Police Forum members, and community leaders. The study found that the community in the Dr. Pixley Ka Isaka Seme Municipality is not involved in the fight against stock theft and that this could mainly be attributed to the poor relationship between the South African Police Service and the community. It was also found that there are no regular meetings taking place to ensure that there is a common understanding regarding various stakeholders’ responsibilities in an attempt to combat stock theft within the area of study. There are no awareness campaigns to discuss the stock theft trends in Dr. Pixley Ka Isaka Seme Municipality area between the police and the community.

The effectiveness of community policing forum in crime prevention

“…For the police to gain legitimacy in the eyes of the communities, partnership will have to be developed. However, some community members are reluctant to participate in crime prevention activities because they feel that the state will not protect them once they provide with information (Masuku & Motlalekgosi, 2022). Dandurand (2014), identified police corruption, police inefficiency, the community's fear of victimization, and lack of communication as the reasons for lack of community participation in crime prevention.…”