The Personal Safety Business Regulatory Authority (Psira) has been requested to take care of “fly-by-night” safety firms as an alternative of regulating and proscribing the usage of firearms, ammunitions and different weapons for all non-public safety companies.
Safety guards stated the business is beneath critical menace from non-compliance by fly-by-night safety firms.
These firms are additionally believed to be issuing firearms to untrained workers, which is a critical breach of laws and prison offense.
In March 2025, Police Minister Senzo Mchunu printed a Authorities Gazette following consultations with Psira. The proposal laws are at the moment open for public and stakeholder remark till 25 April 2025.
One of the vital contentious features of the proposals is the brand new restrictions on the issuing of firearms. The amendments state that safety firms which might be beneath investigation could be prohibited from issuing firearms to their safety officers.
Once more, safety officers may very well be barred from carrying firearms in public areas except they adjust to in depth new necessities, which is believed to ban officers from working in public areas – together with malls, eating places, faculties, hospital and even residential streets.
One other provision pertains to ammunition limits, requiring companies to difficulty an inexpensive amount with out defining what constitutes an inexpensive amount.
The amendments additionally demand that each one armed safety officers bear annual medical, psychometric and psychiatric evaluations at their employer’s expense.
It additionally restricts the usage of semi-automatic rifles. This could solely be permitted to officers offering cash-in-transit companies, in addition to these guarding important infrastructure or offering anti-poaching companies.
Moreover, a number of less-lethal instruments, together with rubber bullets, water cannons and tasers could be prohibited except companies get hold of particular exemptions by means of a posh utility course of.
The response to those proposed amendments has been robust, with criticism coming from the SA Gun House owners Affiliation and the DA, amongst many others.
The DA additionally launched a nationwide petition to oppose the opposing the amendments.
Each the affiliation and the DA stated the proposed laws would successfully destroy the business.
The DA added that these proposals would take weapons away from non-public safety guards and put lives at risk. The celebration stated these additionally threaten greater than 500 000 jobs.
As well as, officers stated as an alternative of punishing the sector, Psira ought to take care of the fly-by-night firms, including that they’ve not adopted the laws
A safety officer at Professional Safe companies who’s stationed in Meyerton, Gauteng, stated though he believes these are good measures, however the focus ought to be on the fly-by-night firms.
The officer, who requested to stay nameless, stated the business is beneath menace from these unlawful safety companies.
“There are a lot of points on this business and the most important of all of them is fly-by-night firms, and that’s the place the main focus ought to be. These firms function with out correct registration and don’t observe the business laws.
“They rent people who find themselves not educated and provides them weapons, and this put security in danger. We don’t know of a few of these persons are criminals,” he stated.
Xolani Radebe, who refused to share the identify of his employer, stated these proposals ought to be directed to fly-by-night firms, including that authentic safety companies ought to be exempted.
“In any other case our lives will even be in danger. Each the general public and safety guards could be at risk in the event that they reduce the usage of weapons in malls and buying centres. Who would face an armed prison with out a firearm? And you already know these individuals (criminals) are harmful and picture what would occur once they know that we aren’t armed?”
“These laws ought to be directed to fly-by-night as a result of they’re those who don’t observe the laws and exploit workers,” he stated.
His colleague, Nkosinathi Mazibuko, added: “This doesn’t make sense in any respect. I actually don’t perceive as a result of we aren’t utilizing firearms to commit crime however to guard the belongings. There are a lot of fly-by-night firms and the federal government is just not doing something about them. These fly-by-night companies are all over the place and persons are exploited,” he stated.
Within the assertion issued earlier this month, Constancy Companies Group CEO, Wahl Bartman, additionally criticised the amendments, saying there ought to be mechanisms focusing on non-compliant operators.
“The main focus ought to be on differentiated regulatory mechanisms focusing on non-compliant operators, equivalent to elevated oversight by means of focused audits, compliance monitoring, and sanctions with out penalising the broader business,” he stated, including that bona fide firms equivalent to Constancy have over time invested tens of millions in employees coaching and growth which have to be seen throughout the present framework.
Police Ministry spokesperson Kamogelo Mogotsi stated the limitation set out within the draft laws relies on numerous elements, together with public curiosity and necessity. He stated there isn’t any prohibition, however solely a justification of the kind of weapon used, particularly in public areas.
“The general intention of the laws is to create a safer and extra regulated surroundings throughout the non-public safety sector, benefiting each service suppliers and the communities they shield,” stated Mogotsi, including that the division famous issues expressed from varied organisations and people.
Prisa spokesperson Bonang Kleinbooi stated the regulator is not taking questions and interviews on the matter.
Nonetheless, within the assertion issued on April 11, the Psira rejected claims that the proposed laws would impede safety companies’ operations, saying it seeks to strike a stability—supporting the authentic operations of the business whereas addressing issues about non-compliance and rogue parts.
manyane manyane@inl.co.za
