By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The African National Congress (ANC) secretary-general Fikile Mbalula says the deployment of the army to deal with the EFF-led national shutdown was justified.
Mbalula was speaking at a media briefing at Luthuli House in Johannesburg on Wednesday.
He said the EFF’s language ahead of the shutdown was divisive and violent, which warranted a swift response by authorities.
Mbalula said President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to deploy the army, and the significant presence of law enforcement agencies, ensured that “anarchy and chaos” did not prevail.
Ramaphosa deployed 3 474 South African Defence Force (SANDF) members, effective from 17 March to 17 April.
Mbalula said that, if the government did not act, it would have been accused of “sleeping on the job”.
“A responsible state cannot allow that re-occurrence, especially when you are forewarned, you have to cover the basics. It was not just war talk by the EFF; they were inflammatory speaking, and nothing about peace was being uttered.
“If Ramaphosa did not respond, as he did, you would say he is sleeping on the job, and this man must go. The army’s deployment was justifiable,” Mbalula said.
He added that the deployment of SANDF and the police was not an act of panic, but was instead a move to ensure the protest doesn’t get out of control.
“To protect the country and to maintain the rule of law and defend an ailing economy cannot be excessive,” Mbalula said.
Mbalula took credit for the lack of significant public participation in the national shutdown, saying South Africans had heeded ANC calls not to join the protest.
He said the July unrest had served as an example of the need for a quick response from law enforcement agencies.
Mbalula also touched on the latest developments around former Eskom CEO André de Ruyter.
The ANC had sent a letter of demand to De Ruyter for allegations he made about ANC officials not acting on corruption allegations at the state-owned entity.
De Ruyter still needed to respond to the ANC’s legal demands, Mbalula said.
He insisted the party was determined to hold De Ruyter accountable.
“De Ruyter, we are still pursuing him legally. By last week, we were still tracing him through legal means because he did not respond to us.