By Mapaballo Borotho

- SAPS says South Africans from all race groups are welcome to apply for positions in the organisation.
- This follows social media concerns that the latest cohort of recruits consists only of African applicants.
- The police service says it received more than one million applications during the current recruitment process.
The South African Police Service (SAPS) says South Africans from all race groups are welcome to apply for positions within the organisation.
This follows concerns raised on social media over the past few days suggesting that the current cohort of new police recruits consists only of African applicants.
“SAPS wishes to clarify that the composition of the cohort is a reflection of the overall applicant pool and the outcome of the prescribed recruitment and selection processes, and not a decision to exclude applicants from any particular population group,” said National Police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe.
Mathe said the organisation received 1,049,998 applications during the current recruitment process.
Of these, 1,079 applications were from the White race group, 3,047 from the Indian race group, 53,797 from the Coloured race group, while the overwhelming majority were from the African race group.
“As part of the recruitment process, priority was given to applicants who possess valid driver’s licences, in recognition of the operational requirements of policing and the need for members to be able to perform a range of policing duties effectively.”
Among applicants with driver’s licences who were prioritised, 556 were White, 1,722 were Indian, 11,743 were Coloured, and 291,591 were African applicants.
Mathe says all shortlisted candidates were subjected to psychometric and physical fitness assessments, followed by further suitability screening.
This included interviews, medical assessments, drug testing, fingerprint verification, criminal record checks, reference checks and other prescribed assessments.
Following these processes, the Provincial Recruitment Boards assessed the candidates and made recommendations for the final recruitment lists.
These boards include community representatives, including members of Community Policing Forums, and are chaired by the Provincial Commissioners or their representatives.
Young people from all race groups have been encouraged to look out for future recruitment advertisements and take advantage of opportunities to join the Police Service.
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