City sets record straight on Project 300 recruitment outcomes
14 July 2025
The City of Cape Town’s Safety and Security Directorate has condemned recent disinformation campaigns on social media falsely alleging that Coloured candidates were unfairly excluded from the Project 300 recruitment process. These divisive claims are not only entirely baseless, but also deliberately misleading.
'The recruitment and selection process for Project 300 was fair, transparent and based on the successful completion of the minimum requirements for the position. Contrary to the misleading and disingenuous information being circulated online, Coloured candidates were not rejected based on their ethnicity or race. This allegation is patently false and seeks merely to create racial division within our communities, and undermine the Safety and Security Directorates’ ongoing efforts to ensure equal opportunity for all candidates. In fact, of the 198 successful candidates, 76 are Coloured. This represents 38% of the final intake,' said the Deputy Chief Bradley Lackay, the Dean of the City’s Public Safety Training College.
The Project 300 initiative received approximately 20 000 applications. This was narrowed down to a shortlist of over 7 000 candidates, who were then invited to participate in a multi-phase process that included fitness tests, drug screening, fingerprint verification, written assessments and interviews.
Only 91 candidates successfully completed all components of the process.
However, after careful review and consideration of the historical and socio-economic realities many applicants face, the City introduced reasonable concessions as part of the selection process, on the following grounds:
• Some candidates who failed the swimming or driving components were still considered, as these shortcomings were understood to stem from limited access to facilities and training opportunities. Such candidates would, however, be required to demonstrate proficiency at specified checkpoints during their training in order to be able to complete the training.
• Candidates who failed a single element of the fitness test (excluding the 2,4 km run) were also considered, based on the understanding that strength and endurance can be improved through training. As with swimming and driving, such candidates would be required to demonstrate themselves fully capable of meeting the full requirements of the fitness test.
These measured concessions increased the final intake from 91 to 198 successful candidates, across all communities and backgrounds, in line with the position requirements and employment equity legislation.
‘These facts are publicly available, and yet certain individuals are trying to manipulate the narrative to cause racial division in our city. We will not stand by while our residents are misled. The truth is clear: the City has acted in good faith and has done everything possible to ensure fairness and inclusivity in the Project 300 process,’ said Deputy Chief Lackay.
He added that the real insult is not to the City, but to the intelligence of Cape Town’s residents.
‘Most residents are smart enough to see through these lies. We urge residents not to fall for politically motivated attempts to sow discord. The City remains committed to fairness, transformation, and creating opportunities for all its people, and Project 300 is a proud example of that. It is racist and deeply repugnant for this constant source of political disinformation to continue to try and convince coloured candidates and staff that they are not able to compete with other candidates based on their race, or to seek to deny them opportunities by trying to convince them that it is hopeless. In fact, the significant majority of middle and senior management of the Safety and Security Directorate is coloured, in line with the Employment Equity legislation,' said Deput Chief Lackay.
End
Published by:
City of Cape Town, Media Office
