CAPE TOWN – Parliament must first approve the deployment of South African National Defence Force (SANDF) troops before they can be sent to parts of Gauteng and the Western Cape to help tackle illegal mining and gang violence.
President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to formally approach Parliament this week with a request to deploy the troops.
During last week’s State of the Nation Address, Ramaphosa announced that the SANDF would be deployed to the two provinces in the coming days.
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While the timeline remains unclear, Chairperson of Parliament’s Defence Portfolio Committee, Dakota Legoete, said the process cannot proceed without parliamentary oversight.
“We still have to receive the official request from the President, which we will not have a problem with, because if 26,000 people die in the hands of criminal elements, that’s a low-key civil war. Thereafter, the date and plan of the deployment will be determined.”
He added that the committee wants a clear long-term crime-fighting strategy from the executive.
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“The Defence Force cannot be a silver bullet for all the problems we have. We want the executive to bring a proper strategy on how to deal with the criminal elements in the long term. The honeymoon of the criminal elements must come to an end. So far, it has demonstrated that it is undermining the sovereignty of the country.”
Legoete described the deployment as long overdue but emphasised that it should serve as a temporary measure.
“We are of the view that, as a stopgap measure, the SANDF will have to come because it is the authority that is assigned to protect the nation and deal with territorial integrity and protection of the sovereignty of the country. As it is, the sovereignty of the country is being undermined by criminal elements.
“As the SANDF, we have to put an end to that situation,” said Legoete.