Durban businessman Moses Tembe has called on the religious community to get involved in the fight against crime.
Tembe, who is also the co-chair of the KwaZulu-Natal Growth Coalition, said there was a need for the religious community to play in the fight against crime.
He was speaking to the media on the sidelines of a meeting between the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the business community in uMhlanga on Tuesday.
The meeting was held for the SAPS to brief the business community regarding their crime-fighting strategy, crime statistics, and the work being done to combat crime in the province.
The business community expressed confidence in the SAPS under the leadership of provincial commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, stating that since he took over, the province has become a notably safer place.
They noted a noticeable difference in crime levels, especially in incidents affecting businesses, such as business robberies.
Tembe emphasised that the fight against crime is not solely the responsibility of the SAPS.
“There is no doubt that crime affects society to various degrees. The reason we thought we should engage General Mkhwanazi and the entire management of SAPS is to begin forging a stronger partnership between SAPS, business, and, in fact, encouraging involvement of other sectors of society, including civil society communities. We believe that everyone must be on deck in tackling crime.
He said, “I will go to the extent of saying to the religious communities that there will never be enough prisons to accommodate wrongdoers committing all sorts of atrocious crimes in the country. We must ask ourselves as a community how we can help inculcate the right values and norms. The religious community plays a much bigger role in the reconstruction and development of the soul."