SAPS officers are under pressure with one person having to cater to nearly half a million population, and the workload resulting in mental health issues, experts say.
Image: File
SAPS officers are under pressure with one person having to cater to nearly half a million population, and the workload resulting in mental health issues, according to experts.
National Police spokesperson, Athlenda Mathe, said South Africa has more than 180 000 officers.
However, according to the latest SAPS annual report, more than 30 000 of these are administrative support employed under the Public Service Act, which leaves the SAPS with just above 150 000 trained police officers who are responsible for crime fighting and employed under the SAPS Act.
The numbers show that each officer has to look after more than 400 000 people.
Lesiba Thobakgale, spokesperson for the South African Policing Union (SAPU), said police are overworked as the SAPS is under resourced both on the physical and human capital front, versus the population of South Africa.
He added that the ratio is above the recommended ratio determined by the United Nations of 1=220.
“There is more that needs to be done to protect police officers, as we still see police station attacks and police killings. The SAPS issued guidelines in terms of police safety, which are insufficient," Thobakgale said.
Dr Johan Burger, an independent crime and policing consultant, said the SAPS is under constant pressure to reduce and prevent crime, but are constrained by various factors and conditions such as population growth, which is outstripping the growth in police numbers.
“For example, police numbers dropped by almost 10% from 154 748 in 2010/11 to 139 901 in 2020/21, whereas the population increased by 10 million, from 50 to 60 million.
"The implications of the decline in police numbers are shown in the police-population ratio which dropped from 1:323 to 1:430 by 2020/21.
"By 2023/24, police numbers increased to 150 388 while the population increased to more than 62 million. That leaves us with a police-public ratio of 1:412 which is still far from the 1:323 we had in 2010,” Burger said.
Tholinhlanhla Dlamini-Ngcoya, a counselling psychologist who has worked with various law enforcement agencies, including the SANDF, said the most prevalent mental health diagnoses are major depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and generalised anxiety.
“There is no way you could be in law enforcement without experiencing mental health issues.
"Whether it affects you directly or indirectly, because, as you leave your house, you don’t know if you’re coming back or not, and that causes anxiety. Even a call to attend to a crime scene is anxiety-provoking, because it’s between you and the criminals.
“With depression, there is a lack of resources. So, officers are under a lot of pressure and a lot of stress because they are probably finding it difficult to do their work,” Dlamini-Ngcoya said.
She said long, irregular hours and shift work lead to burnout, fatigue, lack of sleep (insomnia) and eating disorders, which all add to stress.
This is because officers are not resting, and there is not enough time to exercise and their appetites are affected.
It's either one is gaining weight without trying or losing weight without trying.
Mathe said Project 10 000 is in place to recruit and train 10 000 officers each financial year.
“Every year, budget allocation to ensure more and better resources is set aside. We have the police safety strategy in place that looks at the safety of members on and off duty. We look at ensuring adequate training and that members are in possession of adequate and working equipment and resources, and they have protective gear, etc. "
She added that the SAPS is constantly resourcing all service points with a priority on the grassroots level of policing at stations.
Cape Argus