More youngsters are getting involved in crime

By Nthambeleni Gabara

Pretoria – Government is concerned that youngsters are becoming increasingly involved in criminal activity, instead of preparing themselves for the future.

Safety and Security Minister, Charles Nqakula has expressed his deep concern about the involvement of young people in criminal activities while government was making efforts to ensure they had a bright future.

“When we grew up, we were taught to be visionaries striving to be free. I am worried that most criminal activities are being committed by young people who were born after the dawn of democracy,” he said.

The minister was speaking at a seminar held to discuss the recently released crime statistics at the Institute for Security Studies (ISS),

Many of the perpetrators of the recent attacks on people from other countries were youngsters, said Mr Nqakula, adding that this was evidence that more young people were getting involved in criminal activity.

He emphasised the need for all citizens to pull together and build a safe and crime-free South Africa.

“Crime is a problem for our nation, it impacts negatively in the lives of our people, so we need to unite and fight this problem together,” he said.

The minister urged communities to report criminal activities. “We need to refrain from remaining mum about criminal activities taking place in our respective areas,” he said.

Crime is not a government or law enforcement problem, but a national challenge that needs the collective efforts of residents and their respective structures. - BuaNews