Durban - Executive Committee members (Exco) in eThekwini Municipality say crime has reached worrying levels and needs to be urgently addressed.
Exco members attending a meeting in oThongathi, north of Durban, on Tuesday noted recent incidents that underlined the levels of crime in KZN's economic hub.
DA Exco member councillor Yogis Govender said the killing of an intern last week and the shootings in oThongathi, during which five people were killed, warranted action.
"We need to have a special Exco meeting to devise a plan of action to deal with the challenge," said the councillor.
Deputy mayor Zandile Myeni said crime had reached uncontrollable levels.
"There should be more police and we must install cameras as well, in order to enforce the law," she said.
ANC councillor Nkosenhle Madlala also welcomed the proposal for a symposium to discuss ways of fighting crime.
He cautioned against labelling one race as being responsible for crime and its rise, insisting that crime cuts across the racial divide.
All members agreed that crime hampered the city's ability to attract more investment and ensure eThekwini's development.
In February, The Mercury’s sister publication, the Daily News reported that after a spate of killings in and around Durban, the municipality announced the deployment of Metro Police officers to townships to assist community policing forums (CPFs) and the SAPS in fighting crime.
In the report eThekwini mayor Mxolisi Kaunda said the City was looking into the deployment once new recruits had been trained and metro police numbers increased.
Kaunda did not give a time-frame for the deployment.
At the time of the report, the mayor said increasing Metro Police’s annual intake from 200 to 400 was part of the city’s crime-fighting strategy to spread officers in the townships.
He said the eThekwini Metro Police should have 5 000 members, but it only had 2 000.
The City also made the security and emergency committee a standalone portfolio.