The Public Protector has found that the appointment and deployment of Gauteng’s crime prevention wardens, known as amaPanyaza, were irregular and without legal authority to conduct crime prevention duties.
This was revealed in a report released on Wednesday, just hours after Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi announced that the wardens would be disbanded following disputes about their legal status. Since their launch in 2023, questions have persisted over whether the amaPanyaza should function as peace officers, crime prevention wardens, or traffic wardens.
The investigation by the Public Protector began after a complaint alleged that Premier Lesufi had acted outside the bounds of the law in establishing the unit. The key issue was whether officials from the Office of the Premier or the Gauteng Department of Community Safety had lawfully created and deployed the wardens to perform policing duties.
The first group of wardens began a three-month training course in February 2023 and were deployed within the South African Police Service (SAPS) for on-the-job training in May of the same year. They later participated in several police operations across the province.
However, the Public Protector’s investigation found that their establishment and deployment were not supported by any legislative framework outlining their status, appointment process, training, or duties.
Evidence showed that former Gauteng Community Safety MEC Faith Mazibuko had applied to then-Justice Minister Ronald Lamola in June 2023 to have the wardens designated as peace officers. The application, however, lacked the necessary legal foundation required for such a designation and was rejected by the Justice Department.
A technical committee was later appointed to address the legal issues, but it concluded that there was no lawful authority for the wardens’ designation as peace officers.
The Public Protector’s report stated that the law does not grant the provincial government the power to perform policing functions. Any attempt to exercise powers not authorised by law, or reserved for another level of government, would be unlawful and unconstitutional.
Based on the evidence, the Public Protector found that the establishment and deployment of the wardens without a supporting legal framework amounted to impropriety and maladministration.
As part of its remedial action, the report directed Premier Lesufi to take steps to retain the wardens within the province as traffic wardens. It also instructed the Gauteng Department of Community Safety to ensure that the appointments are made lawfully within 180 days of receiving the final report.
