{
  "id": 6702430,
  "title": "Political parties debate how to tackle crime in Cape Town",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/political-parties-debate-how-to-tackle-crime-in-cape-town",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-11T04:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "IOL",
    "slug": "iol",
    "url": "https://iol.co.za/capeargus/city-watch/2026-09-11-political-parties-debate-how-to-tackle-crime-in-cape-town/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "At a recent local government elections debate in Cape Town, political parties offered little in the way of lasting solutions to the ongoing problem of violence plaguing the city and its surrounding communities. Instead, the parties focused on discussing what could be done, what had already been attempted, and various ideas that might or might not work to curb the violence.\n\nThe dialogue addressed several key aspects of tackling crime, including job creation, the improvement of community services, and criminal justice reform. However, the parties differed on issues such as policing powers, the deployment of the military, and even the death penalty.\n\nFadiel Adams, leader of the National Coloured Congress, acknowledged that his party didn't have all the answers to the crime problem, as the city's crime issues were evolving faster than law enforcement agencies could respond. Adams called for the creation of job opportunities for the city's marginalized Coloured children, suggesting a focus on giving young people jobs before gangs could. He also proposed releasing land for the development of amenities like sports fields.\n\nCarl Popham, a member of the City of Cape Town's human settlements department, emphasized the need to reform the criminal justice system, stating that crime recurrence is due to the non-conviction of individuals. Popham stressed the importance of investing in infrastructure and creating jobs to address the issue.\n\nMmusi Maimane, leader of the Business Leaders' Organisation of South Africa (BOSA), rejected the deployment of the army as a solution, instead calling for fixing the community's dysfunctional families, as dysfunctional young people often end up becoming dysfunctional adults. Maimane also suggested that more powers should be granted to the metro police to investigate crimes, as the South African Police Service (SAPS) is short of approximately 6,000 detectives.\n\nBrett Herron, secretary-general of the Good Party, argued that policing is a national responsibility, while community development falls under the City's purview. He highlighted unemployment, a lack of amenities, housing crises, and a youth development gap as key factors contributing to crime. Herron criticized the DA's suggestion that the criminal justice system must be fixed, pointing out that the Western Cape Health Department's inadequate psychiatric assessments contribute to the state of affairs.\n\nJack Miller of the Cape Independence Party proposed a fundamental change to the constitution, giving autonomy to the province. Miller advocated for treating criminals as one would treat innocent individuals and suggested that the death penalty is not an effective solution. ActionSA mayoral candidate Dereleen James emphasized the need for more job creation and economic growth to combat crime, calling for addressing the addiction crisis among the youth of South Africa and Cape Town.",
  "summary": "Political parties in Cape Town have differing views on how to tackle crime. A local-government debate heard calls for jobs, community development, and criminal-justice reform. However, the parties disagreed on issues such as policing powers, army deployments, and the death penalty, according to IOL.\n\nThe debate comes as residents in some areas of Cape Town face significant challenges in their daily lives. In the Marikana informal settlement in Philippi East, many residents struggle with a lack of functional toilets. GroundUp reports that out of 470 communal toilets, only 45 are working. The settlement is home to over 4,000 families.\n\nResidents have expressed frustration with the situation, citing a lack of privacy and inadequate servicing of the toilets. Community leaders have been trying to bring the issue to the attention of the City of Cape Town for years, but so far, they have had little success.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "GroundUp",
        "title": "We checked 470 toilets in this Cape Town informal settlement. Only 45 were working",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/we-checked-470-toilets-in-this-cape-town-informal-settlement-only-45",
        "published": "2026-09-11T03:30:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Citizen",
        "title": "Cape Town’s cloudy weekend comes with a warm twist",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/cape-towns-cloudy-weekend-comes-with-a-warm-twist",
        "published": "2026-09-11T08:07:06.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}