elf_lord_ZC5
Honorary Master
I think you will find its a bit more than just a few once in a blue moon miracles. And it will become more and more regular now as the police minister is no longer a gangster himself, and the intelligence driven police operations are being given more and more freedom to do their work.
Miracles, still happen - a "patchy" result here, and another "patchy" result somewhere else. No consistent continous results.
You obviously have a serious disdain for the police force, and I am sure you have your reasons, but that doesn't mean they are reasonable. You are also very ill informed about what different types of armoured vehicles are used and useful for.
The police have no need currently for something like the RG32. They have still have a reasonable fleet of those and similar other armoured vehicles. But these can't do the work of smaller, more manoeuvrable vehicles like double cab.
No a RG32 would immediately make every one aware that the "privileged" had arrived at Pick n Pay to do their shopping. The lesser privileged stop at Pick n Pay to do their shopping in a "patrol van"
One of the requirements of the tender is for the armourising to be discreet. So much so that they don't even want the typical “shooting holes” mounted to fixed windows, as this is a give away of a vehicle being armoured (like many of the armoured bakkies used by CIT operations, that they try make discreet, but are normally easy to spot).
A vehicle like the scout is far too heavy, and slow, and obvious to be successfully used in covert police raids.
And adding all that armour to a leasuire vechile is not going to affect it's performance, and already suspect stability and road handling ability.
No free lunches anywhere.
They don’t exactly blend in when cruising the streets of the township or suburb, or even down the highway. You will not move into position using one of these without alerting sentries to your approach.
Mate, if you cannot spot an unmarked police vechile, a mile far, then you don't deserve you criminal status. Even less so if you cannot name the unit it is attached to, nor have a better than good guess, as to who is inside it, and what there particular "talents" are.
You will also have no hope chasing down or keeping up with fleeing gangsters using regular cars.
That was why there was supposed to be a functioning Air Wing ... , and a intelligent control and co-ordination center, for the purpose.
Now you want to run drag races with criminals, using an armoured vechile. In a sub-urban environment, your heavy armoured vechile is at an extreme disadvantage - trying to catch anything halfway servicable.
You want to catch anything in an urban environment - you need a fast agile pocket rocket - or go home and play tiddly winks.
But have fun.
I maybe just try for a second forget your disdain for the SAPS, and try and imagine the kind of conditions they conduct raids in, and also try for a second understand the difference between an overt military style patrol applications of a heavy armoured vehicle, and a covert police style work which tends to take place in a civilian environment instead of in active military zone/theatre of war
Your reasoning might fit the agenda but not the reality.
The only gain of traveling in an armoured vechile is the reduced risk of being hi-jacked between point A and point B.
That is their only PLUS - everything else is a liability - versus the competition.
They may make you feel comfortable against entrenched opposition - but then an air strike is more appropriate, if infantry with ground support is not available.
But if you want to be Gung-Ho Cowboys, and re-learn the Lessons of the past. You are welcome.
Give your opponents at least the credit, of having "intelligence" as good as your own.
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