The DA says that it will take the matter up at all spheres of government in the interests of the safety and security of all residents in Ekurhuleni.
“It is alarming that the mayor and his executive committee have seen fit to deal with an issue going back 20 years in just a matter of days – seemingly in an attempt to make a self-inflicted problem go away,” says Clr Mary Gaby.
She says that the biggest question mark is around the suitability of these recruits who will be required to bring about improved law and order.
“Recruits taken in to the metro’s so-called Peace Corps Programme are undoubtedly among those who have regularly protested outside the Germiston Council building, at one time holding councillors hostage in the Council chamber, and in another incident, as recently as last year, going on the rampage through the Council offices – assaulting terrified staff members, confronting the Speaker with physical aggression and destroying furniture and office equipment.”
The latest of these protests happened just a fortnight ago.
“The decision, to recruit these vets announced with much fanfare by the ANC last week, smacks of leadership that has given in to threats.
“The ANC has ignored the DA’s repeated and urgent warnings over the years to the ANC to cease making promises it couldn’t keep, and to negotiate with the military veterans – most of whom claimed to have been members of the ANC’s former armed-wing, Umkhonto we Sizwe – for an amicable solution in acknowledgement for their loyalty to the liberation struggle in South Africa.”
According to her, the DA will be requesting details of each and every recruit, the planned training they will receive and with what funding, the precise authority they will have, whether or not they will carry weapons, the exact nature of their jobs and their individual legitimacy, among a myriad of other questions.
“There has been no consultation or discussions whatsoever on the matter in the Community Safety Oversight Committee, which raises alarm bells about the speed and carelessness of the decision made, again exemplifying the ANC’s complete disregard for democratic procedures,” says Gaby.
The Advertiser has contacted the Ekurhuleni metro for comment.
By the time of publication, the Advertiser has not received a response. – @IschkeBoksburg
