JOHANNESBURG - Gauteng’s gang-ridden communities are holding their collective breath, awaiting the SANDF deployment promised by government.
Over 2,200 soldiers will be sent to crime hotspots nationwide, including Gauteng, the Western Cape, and Eastern Cape, to tackle gang violence and illegal mining.
Troops are expected on the streets from Wednesday, after President Cyril Ramaphosa gave the green light. But residents say they want more than just a show of force.
Gangs have turned the streets into battlegrounds. But on the 11th of March, fear briefly turned to hope. Soldiers moved into Eldorado Park and nearby neighbourhoods. But only for a day. Residents say days later, the violence returned.
"You get robbed here..there's drugs here also. All I am asking, please, as a mother, bring the army back because we are not safe with Saps here in Elderado Park, they are useless,” said Mercedes Delport, a resident in the area,
Chenelle George, an activist said the very weekend when the soldiers left there was a mass shooting where six people were gunned down.
"The past weekend there was another shooting just here behind the garage where a 17 year old boy lost his life. So we need them as in yesterday, urgently, and we need them to be here 24/7. There should just be a drive through or where they are stationed at a particular area. We need them 24/7 patrolling the streets because as we have seen the shootings don't only happen at night anytime is tea time for these shooters here.”