New Western Cape police chief must tackle GBV and apartheid’s legacy, say activists

Lieutenant-General Sizakhele William Dyantyi has been sworn in as the new Western Cape Provincial Police Commissioner, a post that comes with immense expectations from communities still reeling from gang violence and state neglect. While his pledge to fight gangsterism has been welcomed, civil society groups and political parties are demanding he also prioritise gender-based violence (GBV) and rebuild trust in a police force long tainted by corruption and apartheid-era structures.

Dyantyi was introduced on Wednesday at SAPS Provincial Headquarters in Cape Town by Acting National Commissioner Lieutenant-General Puleng Dimpane and Premier Alan Winde. He replaces Lieutenant-General Thembisile Patekile, who retired on June 30.

ActionSA’s mayoral candidate, Dereleen James, said Dyantyi’s appointment offers a chance to restore confidence. “Communities are crying out for a police service that is visible, proactive and intelligence-driven,” she said. “We are encouraged by his commitment to prioritising gang violence.”

But the GOOD Party’s Brett Herron framed the challenge in stark terms of social justice. “There are guardrails to stop children in the suburbs who experiment with alcohol or drugs from falling off the edge. There are few such guardrails on the Cape Flats where children fall into the hands of gangs. These are not policing issues; they are issues of social justice,” he said.

Linda Jones of the Mitchells Plain United Residence Association said communities hope Dyantyi will root out corruption. “We would love for him to really focus on eradicating the notion of corruption between law enforcement and certain gangs,” she said, adding that weak investigations let perpetrators walk free on technicalities.

Siyabulela Monakali of Ilitha Labantu stressed that gang violence is not an isolated problem. “It is the result of multiple, interconnected factors: poverty, unemployment, inequality, substance abuse, inadequate housing, limited economic opportunities, and the enduring legacy of apartheid spatial planning,” he said. “Addressing gangsterism requires sustained investment in prevention programmes, youth development, education, employment opportunities, and community-based interventions.”

Monakali also called on Dyantyi to prioritise GBV, which he said is fuelled by the same structural violence that allows gangs to thrive. “Women and children on the Cape Flats face a daily war. The commissioner must ensure that GBV cases are investigated thoroughly and survivors receive justice.”

Dyantyi’s record as a career policeman will be tested. For Black communities in the Western Cape, his success will be measured not by arrests alone, but by whether he can dismantle the colonial and apartheid-era policing culture that has long criminalised poverty while protecting the powerful.