Rookie cops to beef up security at PE malls

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The 142 newly graduated constables were part of the 4941 students recruited nationally.

A total of 570 have been sent to the Eastern Cape, with 40 being deployed in Graaff- Reinet, 278 in East London and 110 in Mthatha.

Police spokeswoman Colonel Sibongile Soci said that in Port Elizabeth, East London, Mthatha, Uitenhage and Queenstown the graduates had been deployed to malls and shopping areas.

In Port Elizabeth, they were being deployed at the major malls, including The Bridge, Baywest and Walmer Park, and, in Jeffreys Bay, at Fountains Mall.

Soci said the deployments had also been extended to the rural areas of the province.

The deployment, which started yesterday, comes after the recruits completed the basic police development learning programme last week at various training centres.

"The newly trained constables will now be deployed at police stations throughout the country where they will be performing operational duties for 12 months," Soci said.

"The police management reviewed the previous training curriculum after conducting impact studies and benchmarking with regional and international standards.

"The new, intensified and specialised curriculum . includes continuous practical and workplace exposure.

"The focus is on various aspects of policing which will equip the recruits with the necessary skills to perform professional police duties."

Soci said the workplace exposure was part of the back-to-basics approach, which focuses on enhancing police visibility, ensuring efficient use of resources for investigations and the optimal use of crime intelligence.

Included in the recruits' training curriculum is crowd management to equip them with the knowledge to manage protest action.