Unanswered questions linger about what could have triggered the bloody tragedy at Mpumalanga's Mhala police station, where two senior policemen killed each other.

Unanswered questions linger about what could have triggered the bloody tragedy at Mpumalanga's Mhala police station, where two senior policemen killed each other.

The circumstances surrounding the murders of the station's commissioner, Freddy Baloyi, and branch commander Alfred Dlamini may never be known.

But research has shown that many police officers work under strenuous and dangerous conditions because of staff shortages.

The issues, including low-pay grievances, remain unresolved in spite of government promises to attend to them. It should be self-evident by now that fighting crime with an under-resourced and unhappy police force is an exercise in futility.