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Cape Town – It is not up to police to stop people from abusing alcohol and drugs, Police Minister Nkosinathi Nhleko told Parliament’s portfolio committee on police on Friday.
A committee member had asked what they were doing to stop people from drinking, since he had mentioned many crimes were fuelled by substances.
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It was a societal problem and should be seen as an ideological challenge, Nhleko replied. He was speaking at the presentation of the 2015/16 crime statistics.
“The reason why I don’t drink, for example, is not because a policeman told me not to drink,” he said.
“And the reason for [not using] cocaine and Mandrax is the same.”
It was how he was brought up.
“We need to teach our people it is never cool to intoxicate ourselves and it is counter-productive to have young people who are drunk the whole time.”
In Motherwell, in the Eastern Cape, there were over 530 taverns, which indicated there was a problem with licensing and regulation, Nhleko said.
