Dear President Ramaphosa, as a former commissioned officer in SAPS, it is sad to see that the police have clearly lost the fight against crime.

The recent shooting of eight (and still counting) police officers while on duty clearly shows that the police not only lack human resources but also command and control.

Increasing the student intake is positive but who will give them guidance and proper command and control?

They will be at the mercy of criminals on a daily basis. In order to improve the success rates in investigation and prosecuting and human resources in general, former officers, especially detectives, are surely needed.

The recent re-enlistment excluded experienced officers such as generals Dramat, Booysens and Sibiya to mention a few.

The re-enlistment criteria excluded former officers and also stated that members who left the service while they had cases against them will be excluded, irrespective of whether the cases were false cases or they were found not guilty in court.

The police service was clearly captured by the likes of General Ntlemeza and who knows how many experienced and innocent officers were driven out of the police by false cases, nepotism or lack of promotion.

Yet there are convicted criminals who are still on active duty and enforcing command and control, how ironic.

As per your Thuma Mina call, surely former officers with no criminal records can assist to make your new dawn a reality and deal with state capture and criminality that is eating away at the moral fibre of our society daily!

Lizelle Derby, e-mail