Gayton gets slapped over diversity of Saps’ new recruits
· Citizen
The Justice, Crime Prevention and Security cluster has hit back at Patriotic Alliance leader Gayton McKenzie’s claims that the latest cohort of South African Police Service (Saps) recruits is exclusively black, saying the composition reflects the applicant pool’s demographics and the prescribed recruitment process.
McKenzie questioned the composition of the new recruits after a video showing Saps recruits circulated on social media.
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“This is wrong and totally unfair,” McKenzie said.
He questioned where the coloured, Indian and white recruits were and said he would seek the “correct numbers” of new Saps recruits.
McKenzie also argued that South Africa should include young people from all racial groups in its public institutions.
“Blacks are in majority, that’s how it should be, but it shouldn’t be an All Black Affair,” he said.
More than 1 million applications
Responding to the concerns, the Justice, Crime Prevention and Security cluster said on X that the claims that the current cohort consisted exclusively of African applicants had been noted.
It said the composition of the cohort was not the result of a decision to exclude any racial group.
“The composition of the cohort is a reflection of the overall applicant pool and the outcome of the prescribed recruitment and selection processes, and not a decision to exclude applicants from any particular population group,” it said.
Saps received 1 049 998 applications during the current recruitment process.
Of these, 1 079 applications came from white applicants, 3 047 from Indian applicants and 53 797 from coloured applicants, while the overwhelming majority came from African applicants.
The department said applicants with valid driver’s licences were prioritised because of the operational requirements of policing.
Among applicants with driver’s licences, 556 were white, 1 722 were Indian, 11 743 were coloured and 291 591 were African.
Recruitment process under scrutiny
The cluster said all shortlisted candidates underwent psychometric and physical fitness assessments before being subjected to further suitability screening.
This included interviews, medical assessments, drug testing, fingerprint verification, criminal record checks, reference checks and other prescribed assessments.
Provincial recruitment boards then assessed candidates and recommended the final recruitment lists.
The boards include community representatives, including members of community policing forums, and are chaired by provincial commissioners or their representatives.
The cluster said the large difference in the number of applicants from each racial group naturally affected the final composition of the recruits.
“The current figures indicate that African applicants are significantly more represented in the applicant pool. This naturally has an impact on the composition of the final cohort,” it said.
Saps wants more diverse applicants
While defending the recruitment process, the cluster acknowledged the need for greater participation from communities currently underrepresented in the applicant pool.
It said Saps had previously conducted targeted recruitment and outreach initiatives to encourage white, Indian and coloured South Africans to consider policing as a career.
It also plans to conduct recruitment roadshows and community-based engagements to reach more potential applicants.
“The objective is not simply to recruit more people, but to attract suitable, competent and diverse candidates from across South Africa who are willing to serve and protect their communities,” it said.
The recruitment drive is also intended to contribute towards tackling youth unemployment while strengthening Saps’s policing capacity.
The cluster said Saps remained committed to a “fair, transparent and inclusive recruitment process”, while maintaining the required standards of competence, fitness, integrity and suitability for appointment.