Gauteng’s Policing Crisis: Flat Tyres, Empty Promises and a Province Left Waiting

In Gauteng, where crime rates often make headlines and communities depend heavily on visible policing, a silent but deadly problem is worsening. Dozens of police vehicles are standing idle, not because of a fuel shortage, not because of accidents, but because there simply aren’t enough hands to fix them.

According to Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, 110 out of 372 mechanic posts at SAPS workshops in the province remain vacant. That’s nearly a third of all positions meant to keep law enforcement wheels turning, literally.

Broken garages, broken promises

The numbers were revealed in response to questions in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature and immediately raised red flags for opposition parties. The Democratic Alliance’s (DA) Gauteng shadow MEC for Community Safety, Crezane Bosch, didn’t mince her words.

“Vehicles often sit in SAPS garages for months, sometimes up to a year waiting for repairs. It’s not just an inconvenience; it’s a crisis,” she said. “This isn’t about oil filters or brake pads. It’s about lives, safety, and whether police can even show up when called.”

On the ground: Empty driveways at busy police stations

Bosch said the issue is not just bureaucratic red tape but has real consequences on the ground. In some areas, police stations are left with only one or two operational vehicles, forcing officers to stretch thin or delay responses altogether.

For residents in high-crime communities like Hillbrow, Tembisa, and Soweto, this lack of mobility is more than just frustrating it’s terrifying.

“We don’t want to hear about smart number plates and flying drones,” said one local on Twitter. “We just want to see a working SAPS van pull into the street when we call 10111.”

Joblessness meets incompetence

Perhaps most galling is the fact that while SAPS garages are under strain, thousands of qualified mechanics remain unemployed in Gauteng. Bosch highlighted this disconnect as another example of government failure to match people with desperately needed jobs.

“There is absolutely no justification for leaving those posts vacant,” she said. “This could’ve been a win-win: improve police performance and create jobs.”

The political stakes

This issue hits hard for the Lesufi-led administration, which has staked much of its reputation on smart policing technologies, high-tech security solutions, and public order campaigns. But critics say these promises fall flat when the basics, like vehicle maintenance are neglected.

“You can’t chase criminals with a broken bakkie,” Bosch quipped, underscoring a growing sentiment among voters that the Gauteng government is more focused on headlines than the hard work of running the province.

The DA is calling for urgent intervention, starting with the immediate advertising and filling of vacant mechanic posts. They argue that a capable police force begins in the workshop not the war room.

Meanwhile, Gauteng residents are left waiting for patrols that may never arrive, wondering why the state can’t fix a flat tyre in time to stop a robbery.

In a province that desperately needs a show of force against rising crime, the most visible symbol of safety — a police car driving down the street — is disappearing. Not because the criminals are winning, but because the cars simply won’t start.

{Source: The Citizen}

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