Crack down on alcohol sales in one South African province – DA

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has called for stricter regulations on liquor sales in the Northern Cape, as alcohol-related crime skyrockets.

The calls have come in the wake of the Northern Cape’s release of crime statistics for the final quarter of the 2026 financial year.

These statistics showed alarming trends, with the number of attempted murders, kidnappings, and commercial crime all on the rise.

They also revealed that five provincial police stations ranked in the top thirty for the highest attempted murders nationally.

In all five of these areas, police linked roughly 70% of attempted murder cases with alcohol use, all happening near bars or taverns.

DA Northern Cape parliamentary member, Reinette Leibenberg, noted another worrying trend in the statistics – the high number of alcohol-related crimes.

She said that her discussions with the province’s police commissioner, Lieutenant-General Koliswa Otola, the Northern Cape Premier, and the national police minister had revealed that alcohol abuse is a major contributor to rising crime rates.

Otola also said that provincial authorities lack the necessary resources to effectively tackle this issue.

One issue is the identification and closure of illegal liquor shops, which the Northern Cape authorities cannot effectively combat.

Leibenberg said the province’s police, along with the Northern Cape Gambling and Liquor Board, need to be strengthened to protect the community.

She also called on community groups to help identify stores that are illegally selling alcohol.

She said that the issue of alcohol abuse is a serious challenge for the province, with high crime rates making residents feel unsafe in their communities.

“We are, by and large, still not safe enough in our homes, our places of work and worship, our schools or our neighbourhood shops,” she said.

“It is critical that we strengthen the Northern Cape Gambling and Liquor Board, the police, the prosecuting authorities, and community organisations”.

The Northern Cape is not the only province facing challenges with alcohol, with drinking being linked to a high number of crimes nationwide.

Since the start of 2026, alcohol has been linked to over 7,000 violent crimes in the country, including assault, murder, and Gender-Based Violence (GBV).

Along with violent crime, incidents of drunk driving are high in every part of the country.

In the past week, Cape Town alone arrested over 100 people for driving under the influence of alcohol.

This number poses a real worry for South Africans, as 58% of all fatal car crashes in the country involve drunk driving.

This percentage is among the highest in the world, with the global average at approximately 20%.