The Democratic Alliance condemns the chaotic, ill-prepared, and deeply disappointing handling of the promised army deployment to the Eastern Cape.
I raised this matter in a Member’s Statement in the Legislature two weeks ago, and put questions to the MEC of Community Safety, Xolile Nqatha, to obtain details on the deployment. Today was meant to mark the deadline for boots on the ground in the Eastern Cape, but nothing has materialised.
While soldiers have already been deployed in Cape Town and Gauteng, the Eastern Cape has once again been treated as an afterthought. This, despite the seriousness of the gang and violent crime crisis facing communities in Nelson Mandela Bay, particularly in the Northern Areas.
It was only at the insistence from the Democratic Alliance, who led a community march in the Northern Areas to demand the same military intervention afforded to other provinces, that the president conceded, and agreed deployment must also take place in the province.
The fact that a meeting is only taking place today between the military and SAPS in Gqeberha raises serious concerns that the Eastern Cape deployment is being handled as little more than a tick-box exercise. It is clear that there has been no meaningful preparation, no proper planning, and no coordinated effort to ensure that this intervention will be effective.
Equally troubling is the complete lack of engagement with local policing structures and community stakeholders. Community Policing Forums have not been briefed. There has been no visible engagement with ward councillors, private security stakeholders, law enforcement partners, or community-based structures that are essential to making any intervention on the ground workable and credible.
You cannot deploy troops into a volatile and traumatised environment without proper coordination with the very structures that understand the local dynamics.
The DA has consistently maintained that any response to gangsterism and violent crime in the Eastern Cape must form part of a whole-of-government approach. That means visible policing, intelligence-led intervention, social development support, municipal law enforcement coordination, and direct engagement with communities. It cannot be reduced to a headline announcement followed by administrative confusion and silence.
Next week, I will table a further Member’s Statement in the Legislature demanding that the MEC provide full details of the deployment, explain why this process has been handled in such a chaotic and ill-prepared manner, and demand that he account for why the Eastern Cape has been left behind while deployments have already commenced elsewhere.
MEC Nqatha must ensure urgent engagement with local structures, including Community Policing Forums, ward councillors, private security, and law enforcement stakeholders, so that any eventual deployment is properly coordinated and has a realistic chance of success.
The people of the Eastern Cape deserve answers, and they deserve action. They cannot continue to be subjected to violence while government stumbles from one poorly managed intervention to the next.
The DA will continue to demand accountability, proper planning, and a serious, coordinated response to the crime crisis facing our communities.