Bheki Cele Warns Newly Trained Cops Not to Gain Weight, Suggesting New Ways to Keep Officers in Check

• Police Minister Bheki Cele has told newly trained constables not to gain weight after joining the South African Police Service
• Cele said that it was important for the officers to stay fit to effectively combat crime.
• The police minister also warned the new officer not to engage in corruption lest they want to end up behind bars

MTHATHA - Police Minister Bheki Cele is tackling police fitness, one keynote address at a time.

Welcoming 552 newly trained constables who completed their Basic Police Learning Development Programme, Cele advised the officers not to gain weight and negatively impact their ability to fight crime.

Bheki Cele suggests ways to keep new constables' weight in check

Cele addressed the constables at the South African Police Services (SAPS) Academy in Mthatha, Eastern Cape. The group are the final batch of Project 10 000 which aimed to bolster SAPS ranks by training new officers, TimesLIVE reported.

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Touching on the fitness of officers, Cele cheekily suggested that the SAPS should consider instituting a new policy to keep the officers' weight in check.

Cele said:

"Maybe for seven years after you get out of college, you do not change the size of your uniform. If your uniform, in a year or two, begins to be too small or too big, we send you home."

Bheki Cele warns new constables against participating in corruption

Cele also addressed the more severe corruption issue in SA's police force. The police minister warned the constables against falling into the trap of taking brides from citizens, Jacaranda FM reported.

The minister added that the officers had been equipped with a knowledge of legislation that governs policing and therefore know what is and is not expected from them.

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Cele cautioned:

"Don't get tempted for us to change that blue [uniform] to orange [overalls]."

South Africans doubt body cameras for JMPD cops will stop “cool drink” bribery: “They will use sign language”

In another story, Briefly News reported that South Africans are convinced it will take more than body cameras to hold police officers accountable.

This comes after the Johannesburg Metropolitan Police Department (JMPD) announced on Tuesday, 20 June, that officers would soon start wearing body cams.

According to IOL, JMPD Acting Chief Angie Mokasi stated that they have been getting a lot of complaints from the public about corruption, bribery, extortion and kidnapping from JMPD officers.

Source: Briefly News