Pretoria - Women within Operation Dudula yesterday called on the government to deploy the SANDF to assist the police to fight crime.
Dressed in black, they marched to the Department of Defence and Military Veterans to ask Minister Thandi Modise to approach President Cyril Ramaphosa regarding the deployment of the soldiers.
Behind them was a group of men wearing army gear. As they marched through the streets of Pretoria’s CBD, foreign nationals who operated businesses closed down, fearing possible looting.
The police were also on hand to ensure peace and order during the march.
The movement said the country was under siege because laws and the police were no longer sufficient to keep the people safe.
They asked that Ramaphosa declare a national state of disaster because of the state of illegal immigration.
National secretary-general of the organisation Zandile Dabula said crime has gotten very bad in the country and called for the deployment of soldiers.
She said the mass killings of people in taverns and the recent gang rape of multiple women by a group of illegal miners should be a clear sign for Ramaphosa and Modise to acknowledge that the police need assistance to enhance the safety and security of the public.
“We know that they say they do not have the budget, but if they can pay salaries of these soldiers to roam around the offices, surely they have them in the streets,” she said.
Dabula said they would also be asking the government to start mass deportation of illegal foreign nationals.
“We have been calling for the deportation for a long time; it is happening, but at a very slow pace. Things have to change. The border patrol officials are just taking bribes there and allowing people to just walk in and out of this country as they wish.
“We expect the government to respond within 14 days, and if they do not respond, we will stage a national shutdown.
“We will be happy the day we see soldiers chasing away these foreign drug dealers. Ramaphosa was able to deploy soldiers in the townships during lockdown; he should be able to do the same right now,” said Dabula.
Several women became emotional and burst into tears talking about their children who were addicted to drugs sold to them allegedly by foreign nationals.
Spokesperson for the Department of Defence Simphiwe Dlamini accepted the memorandum and promised to deliver it to the minister.
Pretoria News