Defence minister asked to approach Jacob Zuma about deploying army to aid police
If Police Minister Fikile Mbalula has his way, the army will be supporting police in the Western Cape and Gauteng in the next week. However‚ it is not up to the minister to make that decision. His spokesperson‚ Vuyo Mhaga‚ said they had asked Defence Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula’s office to approach President Jacob Zuma. Only the president may deploy the troops. When asked where exactly the soldiers were needed‚ Mhaga said it would depend on the police to determine the hotspots. "But as you understand‚ in a democratic country‚ soldiers can’t be deployed permanently [inside the country] but that call becomes an operational call‚" said Mhaga. He added that personnel on the ground would make an assessment as to when the army was no longer needed. The last time the army was deployed to assist police in certain areas was in 2015 during Operation Fiela. The operation was in response to violence against foreign nationals. At the time‚ the army played a supportive role to the police. As...
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