The Gauteng Provincial Government has rejected claims that its controversial Gauteng Traffic Wardens are operating illegally, insisting that the unit was established within the bounds of the law to strengthen policing capacity in the province.

In a statement issued this week, the provincial government dismissed as: “misleading and unfounded” allegations made by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi before Parliament’s ad hoc committee on police corruption. Mkhwanazi had questioned the legality of the wardens, suggesting their creation showed: “contempt for the rule of law.”

“The characterisation of the Gauteng Crime Prevention Wardens as illegal misrepresents the facts and ignores the constitutional duty of the province to protect its residents,” the statement read. It added that the wardens were formally designated as peace officers in December 2023 by then Justice Minister Ronald Lamola under Section 334 of the Criminal Procedure Act, granting them the same legal standing as traffic officers.

The Gauteng government said the initiative was designed to supplement, not supplant, the South African Police Service, addressing a widening resource gap that has left Gauteng with one police officer for every 541 residents. It argued that co-operative policing models, such as Cape Town’s Law Enforcement Advancement Plan (LEAP), had already proven successful, and that the wardens’ focus on high-risk townships, informal settlements and hostels was essential to improving response times and visible policing.

Gauteng governmental officials described the wardens as: “a lawful and necessary addition” to provincial safety structures, rooted in the Constitution’s principle of cooperative governance. The province said: “[it] has no intention of litigating sweeping statements” but remains firm that its crime prevention unit: “is legitimate, accountable, and operating within the rule of law.”