DA: Cele more worried about booze and cigarettes than violent crime
The Democratic Alliance (DA) says it is clear that the police is losing the battle against crime in South Africa.
On Friday, Police Minister Bheki Cele released the latest crime stats in Pretoria.
The stats show that murder increased by 1,4% between April and March, while sexual offences, which include rape, increased by 1.7% over the same period of 12 months.
The DA's Andrew Whitfield said the party will write a letter to Cele to provide clarity on some of the stats.
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"The crime stats once again indicate that South African Police Service is losing the battle against most major crimes. The murder rate is, again, the highest it has been in 10 years, with an average of 58.4 murders per day in South Africa.
"Sexual offences increased by 1.7%, with sexual assault increasing by 4.2%. On average, 115.8 people are raped in South Africa every day. Contact crimes also increased by 0.7%.
"National Commissioner, General Khehla Sitole, also confirmed that incidents on farms increased from 41 to 46 and murders from 47 to 49. The DA welcomes the inclusion of farm attacks in the crime statistics but calls on SAPS to accelerate the full implementation of the rural safety strategy," Whitfield said in a statement.
Whitfield said the stats show that Cele and the SAPS are more worried about the ban on the sale of alcohol and cigarettes than violent crime.