By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Defence Minister Angie Motshekga has dismissed reports that the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) soldiers deployed to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) are poorly equipped and running out of supplies amid ongoing conflict.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Cabinet lekgotla in Pretoria on Wednesday, Motshekga said that generals in the DRC had not communicated they were running out of resources.
South Africa has called for a ceasefire in the region, the minister confirmed, saying a war cannot be won through arms but “it can only be won if we sit down and negotiate”.
“We have called for a ceasefire; I can assure South Africans now that our camps have not been attacked for the past 48 hours.”
The minister also revealed that President Cyril Ramaphosa has also issued a warning to Rwandan, saying continued hostilities against SANDF members would be taken as a declaration of war. Rwanda is accused of fighting alongside M23 rebels.
Motshekga said, the reason why some of the SANDF members died was that Rwandan forces were fighting with the DRC forces and were caught up in the middle.
“Unfortunately for us, the DRC forces were fighting with the Rwandan forces over our heads, that’s where we lost our people.
“So, we had to quickly communicate with M23 (rebels) to say we are not part of the battle so don’t fire over our heads. We agreed with them that we will hold a white flag to say we are not part of the battle,” she said.
This was because the M23 rebels needed a passage to go collect their deceased troops, she said.
Meanwhile, her deputy Bantu Holomisa acknowledged challenges facing the SANDF, attributing them to reduced funding.
“We cannot guarantee that we are ready because you are aware that we are struggling to even maintain the aircraft, like the helicopters, which normally give aerial cover to our troops when they are under attack,” the deputy minister said.
He also highlighted shortcomings within the SAMIDRC mission, noting that other allied troops had failed to provide adequate support during attacks.
“The troops of Congo surrendered. The troops of Burundi, where they were supposed to cover another flank, they also disappeared. And all of a sudden, these troops of South Africa ended up being attacked by mortars,” Holomisa said.
Watch the interview in the video below:
Video Courtesy of Fullview.