Should the military be called to deal with extortion and mafias? Holomisa responds

Deputy Defence Minister Bantu Holomisa has criticised the state of policing in the Eastern Cape as criminal extortion syndicates expand.

These syndicates, that initially targeted business owners and individuals, have now expanded their operations to schools and healthcare facilities.

Businesspeople, doctors and school principals are reportedly fearing for their lives and going into hiding as a result of the notorious “protection fee”.

Should SANDF be deployed to Eastern Cape?

The African National Congress (ANC) in the province recently issued a statement calling for the government to deploy South African National Defence Force (SANDF) units in order to curb the crime.

However, Holomisa rejected the idea. He said not only would it be a lengthy process which requires the president’s approval, but it also would not be effective as soldiers cannot arrest people.

Holomisa said that if the police worked with the army, the soldiers would only be chaperoning.

“[President Cyril Ramaphosa] is the only one that can decide whether to deploy the soldiers or not. No one can just phone us and say ‘why are we not intervening?’ It’s not our duty, that’s the police’s duty,” he told Power FM.

Last week Police Minister Senzo Mchunu and Eastern Cape Premier Oscar Mabuyane visited the hotspots in Gqeberha and Mthatha.

Holomisa said the pair had to report their findings to the presidency so a decision on whether the army should be deployed can be made.

The Citizen‘s attempts to get additional comment from Holomisa on this was unsuccessful at the time of going to print. Any update will be included, once received.

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‘Hawks not much help’

Holomisa added that the police should rather use its Crime Intelligence systems to identify and arrest the culprits.

Speaking to Newzroom Afrika on Tuesday, the president of the chamber of businesses in Mthatha, Vuyisile Ntlabathi, said the Hawks were not much help when approached.

“They said it’s difficult to pursue this unless somebody comes forward.”

However, Ntlabathi said it was unlikely that anyone would come forward as they fear for their lives.

Eastern Cape policing a failure

Holomisa said the province’s policing was failing, adding that the protection rackets have been operating for more than three years.

According to the deputy defence minister, “lawlessness” can be found in every corner of South Africa.

He stressed that all that the culprits needed to be identified and arrested, but the Sandf and police cannot achieve this alone.

Holomisa said the national security cluster had to step in and formulate a viable plan.

“The criminal justice system as a whole [needs to be radicalised]. If people are arrested, why aren’t they not charged? And sometimes they are arrested by the police, [but] the following day they are released. So we need to tighten up a little bit.”

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