Cape Town is ramping up pressure on national government to hand metro police and City law enforcement stronger investigative powers, with the City urging President Cyril Ramaphosa to commit to the shift during the 2026 State of the Nation Address (SONA).

What Cape Town is Asking For

Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis says the City’s officers should be allowed to do more than crime prevention. He wants City law enforcement to build “prosecution-ready” case dockets to help drive convictions in gang, gun and drug-related cases.

Hill-Lewis argues that delays in granting these powers are keeping conviction rates low and leaving communities to deal with “preventable suffering” linked to gang violence.

Guns Seized but Convictions Remain Low

The City says its officers confiscate more than 450 illegal firearms a year, yet conviction rates in these cases sit at about 5%. Hill-Lewis blames an under-resourced criminal justice system and capacity limits within SAPS and the NPA.

He says government can change the situation by urgently resourcing SAPS and by fast-tracking statutory reforms to devolve criminal investigative powers to trained City officers.

City Points to Growing Capacity

Mayoral committee member for Safety and Security Alderman JP Smith says Cape Town “can no longer wait” for national fixes, pointing to detective shortages and forensic backlogs.

The City claims that in the past four months its law enforcement agencies confiscated 119 illegal firearms, made more than 4 500 arrests and seized over 16 000 units of drugs. It also says it added 1 263 officers between 2021 and 2025 which it describes as a 48% increase while SAPS staffing declined by an estimated 15% over the same period.

What Happens Next

Hill-Lewis says the City’s draft proposals to expand municipal policing powers were submitted during public participation last year but have stalled. He adds that the City has not secured an urgent follow-up meeting with the Acting Police Minister and says it will look to the President for a firm commitment and may go to court if needed.

SONA 2026 is set for 19:00 on Thursday 12 February at Cape Town City Hall.