By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced the deployment of the army to help the police in fighting the illegal mining and construction mafia.
Ramaphosa confirmed on Thursday, during questions in Parliament and when United Democratic Movement (UDM) leader Bantu Holomisa asked about the army, that hundreds of soldiers will help fight economic infrastructure crimes and illegal miners.
Recently, the police were forced to intervene in Riverlea, south of Johannesburg, where illegal miners engaged in a gunfight in the streets that left six members of rival gangs dead.
This was not the first time zama-zamas have been involved in violence and gun battles in Gauteng.
The construction Mafia has also been accused of stalling projects across the country.
Ramaphosa said they have deployed almost 900 soldiers to help the police fight illegal mining and the construction Mafia.
“Recently, I wrote to the Speaker of the National Assembly as well as the chair of the National Council of Provinces, informing them I am extending the deployment of almost 900 soldiers to work with the police when it comes to safeguarding public infrastructure in our country and performing other tasks such as having to deal with brazen acts of criminals such as in construction as well as illegal mining. We already see that the support they lend to the police is invaluable,” said Ramaphosa.
He said they will increase the budget of the South African National Defence Force, which has over the years been cut by the National Treasury.
Ramaphosa said the military has come up with a plan that will turn it around, and this will require resources.
SA Reserve Bank (SARB)
When asked if he would agree that the Reserve Bank should have economic growth, employment investment, and inflation targets, the president said the Reserve Bank’s approach is to curb inflation because higher inflation has a negative impact on the poor because the value of the currency also goes down.
“When inflation is at the level where it is now and interest rates are high, the balance goes out of kilter because it prevents investors from investing in our country. We hope and trust that this is just a momentary process, and this will pass, and we will see higher levels of growth, lower inflation, and therefore lower interest rates as we proceed forward.”
DA leader John Steenhuisen said the president should be concerned that the Reserve Bank is already compromised because of Ramaphosa’s “unfair exoneration” in the Phala Phala matter.
In response, Ramaphosa said the Reserve Bank has always acted independently.
“It is one of the central banks that are highly respected in the world, and we need to continue to uphold the independence of the central bank,” he said.
He has established two commissions of inquiry since coming into office: the commission into tax, administration, and governance by Sars, established on 23 May 2018, and the commission of inquiry into allegations of impropriety at the PIC, established on 17 October 2018.
Ramaphosa said there were many lessons learned from the commissions he appointed as the reports had been tabled.
Gender Based Violence (GBV)
Ramaphosa has conceded that measures taken by the government to curb gender-based violence have had little impact.
The violence against women and children is a deeply entrenched problem in our country, and this continues despite the clear political commitment and several measures taken to combat it,” Ramaphosa said.
“Our country has high levels of socio-economic inequality, which can lead to increased levels of violence, including gender-based violence,” said Ramaphosa.
“Cultural norms, patriarchal values and toxic masculinity continue to perpetuate GBV. We have embarked on several strategies to end violence against women. Critical among these is the work underway to improve the response of the criminal justice system to GBV with a focus on better training for our police officers”.
Ramaphosa said stiffer sentences are also being imposed on those who abuse women and children.
“The laws that we have enacted have led to increased sentences for offenders. They have also led to tighter bail and parole conditions and provided greater protection for women at risk of domestic violence.”
“Through specialised units like the NPA Sexual Offences and Community Affairs unit, the state is securing more convictions and longer sentences for perpetrators of violence against women and children.”
Watch Live in the video below:
Video Courtesy of Parliament.