TessTurvey

Connecting the dots, Keeping it real AFTER my morning coffee! (Tweets my own, RT not endorsement)

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@CityPowerJhb Are there any updates?

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@CityPowerJhb no power to Saxonwold - what is the update and ETR? CPWEB4911057

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@JHBWater Is there any update to this?

[Ian Cameron @IanCameron23]

🚩SAPS is one of the single largest contributors to the illegal firearms economy through its own losses, thefts and armed robberies.🚩

The recent reply to my parliamentary question exposes how over a five year period, SAPS recorded 3 433 lost or stolen service firearms, broken down as follows:

• 2019/20: 672
• 2020/21: 566
• 2021/22: 712
• 2022/23: 742
• 2023/24: 741

This means that the @SAPoliceService loses on average nearly 700 guns every year. These are not hunting rifles or privately owned weapons, these are state issued firearms intended for policing, repeatedly entering circulation in criminal markets.

The reply goes further and breaks the losses down by cause. Across all five years, SAPS firearms were:

• 212 lost through negligence
• 1 397 stolen
• 1 824 taken in armed robberies


Armed robberies account for more than half of all losses. This is not an administrative weakness, it is an operational threat. It reflects how deeply criminal networks target SAPS as a supplier of weapons. It also reflects the internal vulnerability of SAPS members and infrastructure.

Recovery rates expose an even deeper problem. From 2019 to 2024, only 559 firearms were recovered in total.

That is a recovery rate of roughly 16 percent. Once a SAPS firearm enters the illegal market, it effectively disappears. Communities then face the consequences in the form of murders, extortion rackets and gang enforcement.

Another critical detail in the reply is SAPS’s refusal to disclose which stations, clusters or ranks are high risk for firearm losses. SAPS states that releasing this information may expose vulnerabilities. The problem is that these losses have continued for half a decade without transparent consequence management or structural reform.

Meanwhile, SAPS’s own Annual Performance Plan admits the scale of the crisis. It reports that SAPS lost or had stolen 741 firearms in 2023/24, with future targets hoping only for a slow reduction to 569 over the medium term. In other words, SAPS is planning to continue losing hundreds of firearms a year into the foreseeable future.

These same plans commit to improved firearm regulation and tighter control systems, including the Firearm Control Management System. Yet the core issue remains unresolved: SAPS is one of the single largest contributors to the illegal firearms economy through its own losses, thefts and armed robberies.

This is why it is irrational for government to pursue policies aimed at restricting lawful citizens’ ability to own firearms for self defence, while SAPS itself continues to lose thousands of guns into criminal hands. The state cannot demand disarmament from compliant citizens while failing to secure its own armouries, its own weapons, and its own operational environments.

The data is clear. Before any debate about further limiting lawful gun ownership, South Africa must first confront the reality that SAPS continues to be a major, ongoing source of firearms for gangs and criminal syndicates.

The Democratic Alliance will fight this.

IC

[JSE @JSE_Group]

We are excited to celebrate the listing of the Oribi Global Growth Prescient Actively Managed Traded Fund (AMETF) on our Main Board this morning, bringing our total listed ETFs to 122, with a market capitalisation exceeding R248 billion. This AMETF offers South African investors long-term growth by investing in leading multinational companies across innovative global markets. As part of our commitment to providing future-focused investment solutions, we proudly welcome this addition to our innovative product suite. Read the Press release here: https://t.co/DyyuYVGKwY

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@CityPowerJhb Any update? Still not restored.

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@JHBWater What’s the update on this?

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

https://t.co/nvb0SYjtxL

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@Leon_Schreib @HomeAffairsSA Is it fair to ban someone who contributes to SA economy as her 2nd home? She’s invested millions in school fees, taxes, local biz & supported SA for 18 years. Now missing her son's final school days due to visa misunderstanding. Can her ban be lifted?

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@CityPowerJhb report from resident: “There is smoke coming from an electricity pole on the corner of Abbotswold and Englewold drive in Saxonwold. City Power (ref CPWEB4365600). What else should I do?” @MarcelleRavid @jozi117

[William Gumede @william_gumede]

Microsoft is three times the size of the entire Johannesburg Stock Exchange. In 1994 there was 600 listed companies on JSE. Now just over 200. The top 10 companies listed in 1994, now not in SA anymore. SA's economic decline over 30 years as expressed in the decline of JSE.

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@JustdoitZee Is there any update on this?

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@CityPowerJhb It’s been nearly 9 hours of this outage and 4 hours since your last update…please provide an update on progress and is there a team working overtime on it?

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@yaseerkhan1123 @CityPowerJhb Calling the call centre is impossible. You need to log faults via the mobile app: https://t.co/vBCVUca9h9 - it’s more effective.

[Karyn Maughan @karynmaughan]

“The City of Johannesburg plans to splurge R2.6mill on a year-end event for long-serving employees incurring costs inflated by as much as 766% for goods and services for the ceremony, such as R40k for flowers, R300k for jackets, R769k for watches and R171k for vague service fees”

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@CityPowerJhb Power restored

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@CityPowerJhb after a scheduled 12.5hrs out for loadshedding, we now have no power outside the schedule….ref: CPWEB4082045, Saxonwold. Please turn the power on.

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@RediTlhabi Can we just take a moment to reflect those present on this stage and acknowledge them. WOW Redi…just wow! So proud that you stand amongst these women. ❤️

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@CityPowerJhb Do you wonder what this picture would be if CP had prioritised restoring power to properties, not cancelled still active calls & attended to faults? No power after 96 HOURS. CPWEB4072990: none since 10:00 on 17/11/23. @TshifuMashava

[TessTurvey @TessTurvey]

@CityPowerJhb 93 HOURS of no power. Not prioritized by CP to repair, empty substation.
Current CPWEB4072990: & multiple Closed calls for the same issue: CPWEB4072347 & CPWEB4071184 & CPWEB4069147