South Africa is facing another mafia

To those of us aware of the workings of the world infamous and politically influential Colombian druglord Pablo Escobar, ineffective governance creeping into countries such as Colombia, Mexico and Honduras came as no surprise.

A country gripped by growing gangsterism, lawlessness and organised crime is part of a process – sometimes not quickly detectable by authorities.

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As seen in the South African state capture experience, for a country to fall into the throes of gangsterism and organised crime syndicates, it takes an aggressive recruitment by criminals of key enablers – presidents, Cabinet, law enforcement agencies like police and other people of influence.

With his modus operandi portrayed in several movies like Escobar, Narcos and Pablo Escobar, The King of Coke, Escobar’s strategy included manipulation, infiltration and influencing top Colombian politicians – supporting those who protected his interests and exterminating those who opposed him.

Building a solid network, he smuggled goods, contraband, trafficked cocaine, laundered money – supported by a network of loyalists.

For any mafia state to thrive, there should be weaknesses in governance, corrupt individuals serving in public institutions and socioeconomic vulnerabilities in society.

Still reeling from state capture, a disturbing phenomenon during the Jacob Zuma presidency which left many state-owned enterprises hollowed out – financially bankrupt, with many of the top thinkers having been pushed out – South Africa is facing another mafia.

The growing extortionist mafia – said to be enjoying links with some politicians and police – is sweeping across the country, crippling construction projects, leading to the closure of small businesses and leaving councillors dead.

Hardest hit by this scourge are the Eastern Cape towns of Gqeberha and Mthatha, where this group’s operations have not only led to the closure of businesses, but also a school.

According to the SA Forum of Civil Engineering Contractors, by 2019 an estimated construction project worth R25.5 billion had been violently disrupted and halted, leading to 110 engineers and other skilled technical experts leaving the country.

Making illegal, excessive and unrealistic demands under the guise of a “protection fee”, in the Eastern Cape syndicates have been demanding anything from R20 000 to R200 000 from small, medium-sized and big businesses.

With operating overheads, payment of salaries and other costs, key in the running of any business, nobody budgets for “a protection fee”.

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Police Minister Senzo Mchunu has taken a decisive action on incidents in Mthatha and he should be applauded. Police have collected information, including names of those identified by communities as “kingpins and runners”.

In a country where whistle-blowers are not adequately protected, it is always worrying that those who speak out and give out information to police may lose their lives.

The intervention has seen national police commissioner General Fannie Masemola deploying more police members to the Eastern Cape, to clamp down on the extortionists and gangs.

For the madness to stop, we require a multipronged approach, which includes intelligence operatives, communities, police and organs of civil society.

Failure to intensify the action in every town and village will certainly lead to South Africa slowly sliding into decay and lawlessness, seen in some parts of South America. Are we seeing a Pablo Escobar type of gangsterism in South Africa?