A DA-led government would seek to decentralise policing and give provinces real power in crime fighting and community protection‚ DA leader Mmusi Maimane said on Saturday.

Addressing the party’s Western Cape registration rally in Bonteheuwel in Cape Town‚ Maimane said the DA’s candidate for premier of the province in the 2019 elections‚ Alan Winde‚ had made it clear that he would fight for a provincial police force that could best serve the communities of the Western Cape.

“We want a police force for our province‚ controlled by our province‚ for the people of our province‚” the DA leader said.

He said that ultimately the goal was for a DA-led national government so that the party could realise its dream of a safe South Africa by transforming the police force into “one with the skills and the power to kick violent criminals‚ gangsters and drug dealers out of our communities for good”.

“To do so‚ we will professionalise the police force‚ appointing only skilled and qualified leadership. We will also focus on the four U’s: Under-staffing‚ under-training‚ under-resourcing and under-equipping.”

Under a DA government the number of operational SAPS members would be from 194‚000 to 250‚000 in its first term of office and then boosted with a strong reservist force.

The DA would also bring back all the specialised units and move more officers from their desks into communities‚ Maimane said.

“Under the DA‚ our police force will be transformed into a highly trained‚ highly motivated crime-fighting machine. Criminals will have nowhere to hide‚ and we will ensure that arrests are followed by prosecutions and convictions.

“This is the level of intervention required to take back our communities from the criminals who have invaded our streets and threatened our families‚” Maimane added.