MBOMBELA, Mpumalanga — The Democratic Alliance (DA) is intensifying its call for Premier Mandla Ndlovu to intervene as the controversy deepens over R52.8 million in alleged wasteful expenditure linked to idle Mpumalanga Crime Prevention Warders. The opposition party is holding the provincial Department of Community Safety directly accountable for what it describes as a fruitless and mismanaged youth employment initiative.
At the heart of the dispute are 1,200 recruits who were originally deployed across 90 police stations in the province. Following a decisive ruling by the Public Protector that the program lacked a valid legal prescript, their deployment was abruptly halted. Instead of gaining valuable workplace experience, these individuals have been left frustrated and sitting at home for months, still tethered to their original stipend-based agreements.
Despite initial government assurances that the recruits would be seamlessly transitioned into roles as traffic wardens or Gender-Based Violence (GBV) brigades, the promised administrative shifts have not materialized. Affected individuals report receiving neither updated employment contracts nor completion certificates. Consequently, they continue to earn a basic stipend under the outdated Crime Prevention Warder framework, rather than securing the full salaries associated with permanent traffic or law enforcement positions.
A DA spokesperson emphasized that the party opposed the initiative from its inception due to its shaky legal foundations. Beyond the R52.8 million spent on stipends, the department also allocated more than R3 million to a SETA-accredited service provider. According to the DA, this funding covered only minimal basic security training, falling short of the comprehensive law enforcement instruction required for the proposed traffic or GBV roles.
In its defense, a spokesperson for the Department of Community Safety acknowledged that while some recruits are reportedly performing administrative duties in offices, the department is not fully aware of those currently inactive. The spokesperson attributed this blind spot to potential internal monitoring failures on the department’s side.
The clock is now ticking on a resolution. The 24-month contracts for these 1,200 workers are set to expire at the end of November, leaving the DA to demand immediate clarity and decisive action from Premier Ndlovu’s office before the situation results in further financial and social fallout for the province.
