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The “Rent-a-Cop” initiative by Stellenbosch Municipality doesn’t just reflect inequality, it reinforces it, formalising a system where safety is no longer a right, but a privilege reserved for those who can afford to pay.

The initiative, adopted by Council in 2020, allows external organisations, businesses, and communities to fund the deployment of dedicated Law Enforcement or Traffic Officers for their specific areas. The official launch yesterday saw six “Rent-a-Cop” officers deployed in partnership with the Stellenbosch Improvement and Transformation Initiative (SITI) Special Rating Area (SRA). While the strategic intent behind the Externally Funded Officer (EFO) Policy may be sound, we must confront a difficult truth that this model risks deepening the divide between well-resourced enclaves and vulnerable communities.

We support community-driven safety initiatives. But we reject the notion that basic safety, a constitutional right, should become a pay-to-play privilege. When dedicated law enforcement officers are deployed exclusively to a well-resourced Special Rating Area (SRA), funded by private stakeholders, it leaves high-risk areas like Cloetesville, Kayamandi, and Ida’s Valley behind, communities where gang-related violence has turned streets into battlegrounds.

Even Stellenbosch Executive Mayor Jeremy Fasser has acknowledged the severity of the crisis. He has been quoted in the media describing Cloetesville as “a town under siege,” adding that “some of our communities are being held hostage in their own homes” due to daily turf wars and escalating trauma. Yet instead of directing urgent resources to these high-risk areas, the Municipality has chosen to prioritise safety in communities that already benefit from it.

As GOOD, we call for a transparent, need-based expansion plan for any law enforcement deployments. One that prioritises the most vulnerable communities, not just the most affluent. Safety innovations must be inclusive, not divisive. The GOOD Party urges Stellenbosch Municipality to co-develop safety solutions with community policing forums, neighbourhood watches, and civil society in underserved areas. Public safety must be a shared, constitutional guarantee, not a luxury reserved for the wealthy.

The GOOD Party remains committed to inclusive governance, ethical innovation, and justice-driven development. We will not stand by while municipal safety becomes a commodified service for the few.

Safety cannot be sold.

Issued by Marius van Stade GOOD: Stellenbosch Municipality Councillor