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Dozens of police stations in the Eastern Cape are facing an operational crisis, with nearly 40 running the risk of possible closure over deteriorating infrastructure and unsafe working conditions.
The looming threat follows a campaign by the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru), which has sought the intervention of the employment and labour department to inspect 38 police stations across the province for compliance with occupational health and safety standards.
The union is calling for the closure of stations found to be unsafe until repairs are completed.
The alarming state of police infrastructure was revealed by Popcru deputy provincial secretary Nokwayintombi Maqina, who painted a bleak picture of the conditions under which some officers are expected to work.
“Some of our members still use buckets to relieve themselves. We have cases of members that work in prefabs that do not even have air conditioning,” Maqina said.
“Our police stations are in a very bad condition around the province.
“We have called on the department of labour to inspect, so far, three police stations between Willowvale and Centane. We expect that report by July 13.
“After that, we will go around all other police stations and use the reports so that these police stations are permanently closed until there are renovations.”
According to Maqina, the stations selected for the first round of inspections represented some of the worst examples of neglect.
“We started with these police stations because they are among the worst.
“It is not just infrastructure, but they have operational issues like using vehicles that are long overdue for maintenance.
“Some of these vehicles get stuck on the road. We are now focusing on that campaign to restore these police stations.”
She estimated that as much as 90% of police stations in the province were grappling with infrastructure-related challenges.
“The one in Willowvale is quite shocking and I am sure the labour inspectors did not expect what they saw.
“A police officer using a bucket to relieve themselves. I really doubt some of them will be open after the final report,” she said.
The list of stations targeted by the union spans all regions of the province and includes Buffalo City’s Beacon Bay, Ndevana and Qonce police stations.
Some of the other worst police stations include Bell, Seafield, Flagstaff, Mthontsasa, Maluti, Matatiele, Mbizeni, KwaNdengane, Hlababomvu and Butterworth
The Beacon Bay station was condemned and effectively closed by the labour department in May 2025 after inspectors identified severe health and safety hazards.
The building suffered from burst pipes, cracked walls, faulty electrical wiring, mould infestation and extensive water damage.
Following the closure, 43 police officers were forced to operate from a temporary container facility while some functions, including detective services, were relocated to Chiselhurst.
However, when the Dispatch team visited the station last week, the temporary container had been removed and operations had resumed inside the building following renovations.
Former Community Policing Forum chair and founder of crime-watch organisation, Safer Futures, Amanda Timms, said residents had welcomed the return to normal operations.
Timms said operations resumed inside the building a month ago after undergoing major renovations.
“People have been happy in our crime groups because there were a lot of complaints about the service from that container.
“But the people worked with what they had and it is good now that they can work properly. We’re now able to reach them on their phones,” she said.
Meanwhile, the situation at the Ndevana police station remains a concern.
Employees at the station said a range of infrastructure defects continued to compromise both security and working conditions.
Among the issues raised were a faulty backup generator that had reportedly been out of service for four years, a leaking water reservoir, damaged entrance gates and concerns about the security of the station building.
“The water reservoir is not helpful to the station. It does not assist us. We do not have water, it is leaking,” one worker said.
“There is no burglar gate and the front door is damaged and does not close properly. It is not safe, especially for night shift.”
A visit to the station last week revealed muddy conditions around the entrance caused by water leaking from the reservoir.
Both entrance gates were standing open, though it could not immediately be established whether the station’s main door remained defective.
Provincial labour department boss Patiswa Mbongwana said on Sunday that workplace inspections were conducted regularly across the Eastern Cape, either as part of routine oversight or in response to concerns raised by stakeholders.
Mbongwana said the department employed a range of interventions depending on the severity of conditions found during inspections.
“We have many types of interventions that we implement depending on the circumstances.
“We also conduct inspections upon request from interested parties.
“In cases where conditions are found to be severe, we may issue a prohibition notice,” she said.
A prohibition notice, issued in terms of Section 30 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act, is an immediate directive that prevents an employer from continuing a specific activity, process, or using machinery deemed to pose an imminent risk to workers or members of the public.
Such a notice can halt the use of particular equipment, close off unsafe sections of a workplace, or suspend operations at an entire facility until identified safety, structural or equipment-related defects have been addressed.
The union revelations come as fresh concerns emerge over the state of police facilities throughout the province, with the DA recently highlighting the condition of KuGompo City’s Cambridge police station, where fire-damaged accommodation blocks have remained unrepaired for more than two years.
The DA has called for urgent intervention from acting police minister Firoz Cachalia and Eastern Cape provincial commissioner Vuyisile Ncata, after an oversight inspection found officers continuing to work and live around infrastructure damaged by the fire.
According to former MPL and now higher education deputy minister, Yusuf Cassim, the affected section of the Cambridge barracks remained visibly damaged, with charred walls, exposed roof structures, damaged ceilings and offices below the burnt section also affected.
Cassim and BCM ward councillor Jason McDowell went on an oversight inspection, during which they assessed the condition of the station’s barracks and engaged management on operational challenges facing the police facility.
Cassim warned that deteriorating infrastructure was affecting morale and operational readiness.
He said police officers could not be expected to serve communities while living and working around burnt accommodation, water damage and neglected facilities.
The party alleges it found that only 73% of the vehicles required for policing operations were available, while just 70% of the existing fleet was operational.
Several vehicles were awaiting repairs, with more than five having exceeded 200,000km, and delays in sourcing parts continued to hamper maintenance efforts, he said.
Cassim said one of the station’s two recently acquired motorcycles was already out of service.
A parliamentary response by Eastern Cape community safety MEC Xolile Nqatha confirmed that eight rooms at the police station were damaged by fire while a further five rooms were affected by water leaks.
Despite assessments being conducted after the blaze, no repair work has been undertaken.
Both the provincial legislature’s community safety portfolio committee and provincial police had not replied to questions sent by the time of publication.
EFF MPL and provincial secretary Simthembile Madikizela on Sunday said they supported calls for the labour department to immediately inspect police stations across the province.
Madikizela said the conditions under which police officers are forced to work are a direct reflection of the ANC government’s neglect, incompetence, and corruption.
“Dilapidated police stations with broken toilets, leaking roofs, poor ventilation, and unsafe infrastructure are unacceptable.
“These are not conditions in which those entrusted with protecting our communities should be expected to work.
“This is an insult to the men and women in uniform and to the communities they serve,” he said, adding that “immediate intervention is necessary.”
The EFF called for a launch of a full investigation into corruption involving previous SAPS infrastructure projects, saying billions of rand have been allocated over the years for police infrastructure, yet more than 30 police stations remain unfit for human occupation.
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