Africa-Press – South-Africa. Deputy Minister of Defence Bantu Holomisa has defended the decision to deploy soldiers to help the police in Gauteng and the Western Cape fight gang violence and illegal mining.
He says people who don’t agree should come up with solutions, rather than criticising the decision.
Holomisa told EWN on Monday he is confident the move will yield the desired results, adding that the soldiers are ready and could be out in the streets soon.
President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to deploy the army to help in policing in the two provinces has received a mixed reaction. While commentators and some organisations support the idea, those opposed have warned that it is not a sustainable strategy to dismantle drug networks and put an end to illegal mining.
But Deputy Defence Minister Bantu Holomisa says instead of criticising the move, they should provide solutions.
“We are not going to nurse the feelings of analysts who are not coming up with solutions as to how do we deal with crime on the ground,” Holomisa said.
He says the army is ready to be deployed after conducting some groundwork.
“We’ve sent our own military intelligence to scan the area to make sure when we deploy our military, our troops are safe,” he added.
He says the public shouldn’t worry about the soldiers’ conduct because there are institutions in place that exercise oversight over defence, including Parliament.
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