City of Johannesburg Addresses Leadership Security Policy Concerns

The City of Johannesburg has announced its decision not to appeal a recent court ruling regarding its leadership protection policy. The move aims to foster transparency and clarify the protocols surrounding the security of executive leadership, ensuring public confidence in the process.

Since 2016, security for the City’s leadership has been based on threat risk assessments conducted by the State Security Agency (SSA) or the South African Police Service (SAPS). However, no formal policy governed these measures, leading to inconsistencies.

The newly endorsed policy seeks to regularize and standardize the provision of security services.

“The policy, which has been endorsed by the Council, aims to regularize and standardize the provision of protection services in alignment with applicable legislation and regulations,” the City stated.

The City refuted claims that the Executive Mayor and Council Speaker each have a large entourage of bodyguards and vehicles, labeling these assertions as deliberate misinformation.

“The misinformation alleges the executive mayor and council speaker have eight and six bodyguards respectively and six convoy vehicles. This deliberate misinformation seeks to present the current leadership as insensitive and flamboyant, which is not the case,” the statement read.

Under the new policy, security measures will be determined on an ad-hoc basis following thorough risk assessments.

The City reassured residents that the protection services would not involve new hires but would utilize personnel from the Johannesburg Metro Police Department (JMPD).

“Inspectors involved in these security measures are part of the JMPD, with no new recruits in this area,” the statement clarified.

The City outlined its continued focus on key priorities, including:

• By-Law Enforcement and Safer City Initiatives: Measures to enhance safety across Johannesburg.
• Accelerated Service Delivery: Improvements to municipal services.
• Inner-City Rejuvenation Plan: Reclaiming hijacked and dilapidated buildings to restore the city’s core.

These initiatives, launched after the Mayoral Lekgotla, have shown significant progress in recent months.

The City plans to thoroughly review the court judgment and finalize an implementation strategy for the new policy. Details will be shared with the public to maintain transparency.

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