Cele: Police fighting criminals and spread of Covid-19

Cele addressed police officers during a visit to the Carousel Toll Plaza on Friday.

"So I call on you to continue dealing decisively deal with both the armed and unarmed enemies,” he told officers.

"As you know, Gauteng has become the new epicentre from the Western Cape (and the) Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal are problematic areas. Those are the same place where the crime is, those are the same provinces where criminals want to run amok, but up to this point I'm very happy to say we have not lost sight of our core function and we are dealing with this criminals.”

The minister also urged officers not to lose focus when it comes to the issue of gender-based violence, as President Cyril Ramaphosa has declared it as the second pandemic South Africa is facing.

"The victims of gender violence must be treated accordingly with respect, don't send them back to negotiate, that is not our job. Our job is to arrest those people who perpetrate violence against women and children.”