The City of Joburg has pledged to protect residents from rampant crime across the municipality, with Finance MMC Margaret Arnolds announcing increased resources for the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD).

Arnolds tabled the R89.4 billion budget for the 2025/26 financial year at the council chambers in Braamfontein on Wednesday.

She stated that the city’s degradation through illegal dumping, informal invasions, vandalism, cable theft, and by-law non-compliance erodes dignity, drives away investment, and costs the municipality millions of rand.

“It is not enough to deliver services. We must also protect them,” she said.

The JMPD’s operations will receive a major boost for optimal deployment of officers in high-risk zones, taking advantage of strategic appointments made with the 2024/25 budget allocation.

Its officers will conduct weekly compliance patrols in informal trading hotspots.

“Smart surveillance systems linked to precinct revitalisation initiatives, supported by a R16 million investment in the Integrated Intelligence Operations Centre in Public Safety,“ Arnolds said.

There will also be support for the municipality’s bad building strategy, where hijacked and unsafe properties are secured, repurposed, or demolished.

“The inner city war room, announced in the State of the City Address, is now operational. It brings together development planning, JMPD, housing, and public safety into a single command unit focused on precinct-by-precinct transformation,” she explained.

Among the targeted areas are Hillbrow, Marshalltown, Berea, and parts of the old central business district.

Arnolds promised that residents in these areas will see visible change – cleaner streets, safer buildings, and renewed economic confidence.

“The city is also finalising a new municipal service standards charter with clear service standards and turnaround time commitments. This charter will be a public promise, displayed in libraries, clinics, and customer centres together with the integrated development plan documents – making our accountability visible and binding,” she added.

In addition, the city will embark on a targeted campaign to reduce illegal connections, supported by JMPD and community-based reporting mechanisms, according to Arnolds.

loyiso.sidimba@inl.co.za

Source link