This year marks a critical election year. But, as campaigning intensifies and tensions rise, urgent action is needed to protect the integrity of our democracy and halt the alarming increase in political violence that we have seen over the past decade.

No elections can be free and fair where there is the continued threat of violence and killings. No country can call itself a true and modern democracy when it is held in the grip of fear and lawlessness.

Yet, the inter-ministerial committee (IMC) on political killings reported in September that 52 councillors and 103 office bearers in KwaZulu-Natal alone have been murdered since 2011.

These tragedies are unacceptable. In response, all members of society, including political parties, trade unions, members of the government, as well as community leaders and organisations, must stand up and take a no-tolerance stance against attacks, intimidation and assassinations, and instead call for peace and discipline.

In addition to strong leadership, the SA Police Service (SAPS) can play a vital role in deterring criminality and violence. However, to perform this work effectively over the coming months, the government and SAPS leadership must implement several strategic interventions.

The first and simplest solution for discouraging politically motivated attacks is to put more boots on the ground, especially in hot spot areas such as KwaZulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape.

Having more police officers within these key areas would result in faster response times, potentially stopping crimes before they are carried out and allowing police to apprehend perpetrators more effectively.

Increased focus on intelligence gathering measures is also needed to identify and apprehend perpetrators before they can enact plans against political rivals. It is vital to ensure that all law enforcement agencies share intelligence in order to work in synergy and maximise their impact in the fight against crime.

Likewise, increased investment in advanced data analytics, surveillance technologies and human intelligence resources would assist the police in identifying criminal behaviour or trends and launching pre-emptive measures.

The ready availability of illegal firearms on our streets is fuelling gun violence, shootings and assassinations. In 2021, the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime estimated that SA had more than 2.3-million illegal firearms in circulation.

However, the scale of the problem may be far larger than we know. In response, the government and the police must implement targeted initiatives to remove these weapons from our streets.

These should include tightening border controls to prevent gun trafficking and holding firearm amnesty periods. We must ensure that adequate provisions are made to monitor and address rising political hostilities and that police can act swiftly against those responsible for undermining the rule of law.

Only then can we ensure that battles for the ballot and political rivalries do not deteriorate into battles for lives and wars on the street.

■ Ngwenya is president of the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union.