Why security is so slack at City Hall

There are no metal detectors at the main door to the Port Elizabeth City Hall, and the fingerprint technology and CCTV cameras have not been working for a few years.

At the city’s main administration hub – the Lillian Diedericks Building – security checks are inconsistent as visitors only sign in sporadically.

There are also no metal detectors at the doors.

The municipality’s CCTV system and network are plagued by constant disruptions and shutdowns, while the biometric fingerprint system that allows staff in and out of municipal buildings,  is no longer functioning.

This has left the city’s buildings vulnerable to theft and vandalism.

In the latest security breach, a man carrying a gun breezed through security and sat for hours in the corridors of City Hall, waiting for an opportunity to speak to mayor Mongameli Bobani.

When he finally got the chance, shortly after 4pm on Monday, he pulled out the gun and demanded that the municipality give him a house.

This has prompted Bobani to call for the introduction of stricter security measures at all municipal buildings. He said security was too lax.

The municipality cut ties with Afrisec Strategic Solutions in 2016 which used to run the CCTV system on behalf of the metro.

It subsequently started legal action against the firm for an amount of R92m it believes it is owed.

This has since left the CCTV system unstable.

Acting city boss Peter Neilson said previously  the municipality was pursuing an out-of-court settlement with Afrisec.

On Wednesday, Neilson said no agreement had been reached as he had yet to give his input.

“I still think it’s easily achievable [but] I wish we could,” Neilson said.

Bobani has been vocal in his belief that the metro should not have ended its contract with  Afrisec.

Asked if his call for security to be beefed up was an attempt to get  Afrisec back in business with the metro, Bobani  said: “The matter of  Afrisec is being handled by the administration.

“I don’t know what’s happening there.

“We cannot on our side interfere in the administrative processes.

“What is most important is that our security in our building must be improved,” Bobani said.

Meanwhile, on February 20, DA councillor Gustav Rautenbach submitted questions to the safety and security department about the overall management and control of the municipality’s CCTV system.

He wrote: “Recently I noticed that the CCTV camera equipment box at the rear of City Hall has been vandalised whereby the enclosure door has been ripped off and the entire internal control equipment seemingly removed illegally.

“This observation was extremely disturbing to me and I am sure the residents of the metro would not be pleased if such assets are vandalised and destroyed”.

He then asked about the number of CCTV cameras that have been installed, if they were linked to the control room, how many were operational and vandalised, among a host of other questions.

Rautenbach also submitted a motion to the committee on Monday, calling for an urgent anti-crime summit by April 8 to debate the scourge of violent crime and murders in the metro.