Police stations falling apart in South Africa’s murder capital

Police barracks in Gqeberha, formerly known as Port Elizabeth, are falling apart, as violent crime continues to plague the Eastern Cape.

The Algoa Park police station has come under scrutiny for the state of its police barracks, following a Democratic Alliance (DA) oversight visit.

This visit discovered that the barracks were unfit for human habitation, with poor security and collapsing infrastructure.

The oversight found that the high-rise buildings had no functioning lifts and that one building had been without water for weeks.

It also found a lack of suitable safety equipment, including fire extinguishers that had not been serviced for five years.

The buildings lacked adequate waste removal services, as oversight committees found garbage scattered throughout them.

In addition to these challenges, the oversight committee noted that the buildings were in a state of decay, with several broken windows and a general lack of maintenance.

The poor living conditions threaten the health of South African Police Service (SAPS) members working in the precinct.

DA provincial legislature member in the Eastern Cape, Retief Odendaal, said the state of the police station posed a risk to the community.

“Police officers cannot be expected to combat crime effectively while living in conditions that pose a risk to their health, safety, and morale,” he said.

The barracks are meant to exclusively house police officers working in the area, but residents noted that this might not be the case.

It is alleged that certain sections of the barracks have been hijacked by unauthorised tenants who are not employed by the SAPS.

“I believe that these buildings are a safety hazard to all residents and could quite frankly be condemned,” Odendaal said.

He called on the Minister of Public Works and Infrastructure, Dean Macpherson, to intervene in the barracks’ decay.

While government buildings are under the jurisdiction of the Department of Public Works and Infrastructure, the department is not responsible for general upkeep.

Day-to-day cleaning and maintenance are the responsibility of the tenants, who, in this case, are the SAPS.

Macpherson said his department would investigate the Algoa Park police station and then develop an action plan.

The murder capital of South Africa

The Eastern Cape’s decaying infrastructure comes as the province continues to struggle with its high number of violent crimes.

In the first three months of 2026, the province recorded the highest murder rate per capita in South Africa.

The Eastern Cape averaged 14.3 murders per 100,000 residents, nearly double the national per capita rate of 7.6.

The Kwazakele police station in Gqeberha also had the highest number of murder cases in the country, with 59 between January and March 2026.

Along with Kwazakele, two other Nelson Mandela Bay police stations ranked in the top 10 for the most murder cases.

The area’s high murder rate means it was ranked the third most violent city in the world, according to the Mexican Council for Public Security and Criminal Justice.

The alarming number of murders, along with rates of other violent crimes in the city, led to a protest on 10 July 2026.

The recent protest was the largest anti-crime demonstration in the area’s history, with over 2,000 residents attending.

Protestors said that the government needed to do more to address crime in the area and support local police stations.

DA leader Geordin Hill-Lewis spoke during the demonstration and condemned the violence plaguing the city.

“This march is for every family who has buried a loved one, and every police officer failed by a broken system,” he said.

The Eastern Cape also had the highest number of rape cases per capita in the country at the beginning of 2026.

The province also saw an increase in assault and robbery cases year on year between January and March.

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Photos of the Algoa Park police barracks

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