Growing discontent is mounting in the Western Cape, with numerous calls for the removal of provincial police commissioner Thembisile Patekile amid a surge in gang-related violence and a perceived lack of leadership.
The crisis has reached a boiling point, with over 400 murders recorded in the province in October alone. Residents and community organisations accuse Patekile of being conspicuously absent while gang warfare spirals out of control, leaving communities in fear.
The situation has prompted strong reactions from various quarters. Mitchells Plain activist Malcolm Curtis voiced a sentiment shared by many, questioning the commissioner's silence amid the bloodshed. "It seems like we don’t have a police commissioner in the province. How is he this quiet when our people, our children, are dying like flies?" he asked.
The violence has spread across numerous areas, including Mitchells Plain, Delft, Elsies River, Hanover Park, Manenberg, Khayelitsha, Bonteheuwel, Kraaifontein, and Philippi, leaving a trail of devastation in its wake.
Ian Cameron, chairperson of the Parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Police, has been particularly critical of the provincial South African Police Service (SAPS) leadership. He stated that the police service in the province was “not winning the fight” against gangs, citing under-resourcing, poor coordination, and a lack of leadership as key factors.
Cameron went on to say: “The apparent absence of the provincial police commissioner and his failure to reassure affected communities speak volumes." He urged national SAPS leadership to consider restructuring and potentially replacing provincial management, advocating for the appointment of someone capable of restoring command, rebuilding public trust, and leading an intelligence-led offensive against organised crime.
Adding to the chorus of disapproval, ActionSA MP Dereleen James highlighted the disturbing rise in gang-related murders of children on the Cape Flats, which have doubled in the past year. This has reinforced calls for President Cyril Ramaphosa to declare a state of emergency. Cachalia confirmed that gang-related murders of minors on the Cape Flats rose from 27 to 59 between 2023/24 and 2024/25. Between April 2020 and March 2025, 472 children were murdered, with Elsies River, Mitchells Plain, and Delft accounting for over 40% of these deaths.
James stated: “These figures lay bare the devastating reality in Cape Town’s forgotten communities, where children are increasingly caught in the crossfire of warring gangs that continue to reign unchecked, with no clear plan of action from government."
Llewellyn MacMaster, chairperson of the Cape Crime Crisis Coalition, drew attention to a recent ombudsman report by Premier Alan Winde, which exposed gang infiltration within police management. MacMaster revealed that the coalition had requested a meeting with Patekile to discuss the ongoing gang wars long before the report's release, but never received a response.
“The one thing that stands out is the inaction by the police commissioner with regard to what has come out in the report. We were supposed to have a meeting with him, but that meeting has not taken place yet,” MacMaster said. He further stated that Police Minister Firoz Cachalia had instructed Patekile to communicate with the coalition after they raised several issues with the minister, but this meeting also failed to materialise.
MacMaster said residents were growing increasingly “concerned, frustrated and angry” as the SAPS insisted crime was under control despite rising death tolls. He indicated that if the meeting did not occur within seven days, the coalition would join calls for Patekile to step down.
Abie Isaacs, founder of the Cape Flats Safety Forum, echoed these concerns, stating that there was “no proof” that the police were reducing gang violence. Isaacs referenced a media briefing in September where Minister Cachalia admitted there was no plan to tackle gang violence, questioning how Patekile could claim police in the province had crime under control.
Isaacs asked: “Almost every weekend there are reports of several bodies found murdered in parts of the Cape Flats. Almost every area in the province has guns free flowing, causing the deaths of sometimes innocent people. So how, exactly, are police winning this war on crime?” He accused Patekile of showing “little to no care” in addressing the “urban terror” suffocating the Cape Flats since taking office.
Jay Jay Idel, founder of Fight Against Crime, argued that the provincial SAPS lacked the capacity to manage the scale of gang violence. “After monitoring the situation on the ground, it became painfully clear that police do not have the operational capacity or resources to contain gang warfare at the scale we’re seeing," Idel said.
Idel criticised Patekile’s repeated public claims that “crime is under control”, stating that they contradicted acting Minister Cachalia's admission that SAPS is overwhelmed and lacks a plan to tackle gang violence. “The year is almost over, hundreds of dead bodies later, and yet the police leadership claims they have everything under control. They actually don’t, and it’s unacceptable,” Idel said. He added that gangsterism has not been prioritised under Patekile's leadership.
Idel stated: “We fully support the call for Patekile’s removal from office. This past weekend more than 14 were reported dead. What will the number be this weekend? The murder numbers of the past few weekends are yet another reminder that the Western Cape needs a police leader capable of confronting gang violence head-on. Right now, we do not have that.”
Bonteheuwel community activist Henriette Abrahams believes the problem extends beyond Patekile, stating that “the provincial police management is ineffective." She emphasised the unacceptable reality of children being murdered in communities and added, “We cannot allow for it to be normal that children as young as three are being murdered in communities."
In response to questions, Patekile acknowledged a “concerning surge in murders” in the province and stated that targeted operations and hotspot deployments were being implemented. He stressed the importance of community collaboration in tackling crime and identified illegal firearms as a major driver of violence. However, he did not address concerns about his lack of presence in the Cape Flats or comment on calls for his removal.
Provincial community policing forum chairperson Fransina Lukas acknowledged the frustration of residents but argued that Patekile’s resignation would not solve the crisis. “We believe the call must be for more coordination in the fight against gangsterism and more resources to be deployed to the Cape Flats," Lukas said. She added, “Therefore, we support the call for the president to declare the Cape Flats a disaster area.”
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