Two weeks ago in the FM, Tristen Taylor raised an interesting argument (https://www.businesslive.co.za/fm/opinion/on-my-mind/2020-07-09-tristen-taylor-abolish-the-army/): abolish the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) and redirect the budget spent on defending SA and meeting our continental defence responsibilities towards disaster management, emergency medical services and upgrading hospitals.

The thesis is based on the death of Collins Khosa during the lockdown; an amount of R5.13bn in the R50bn 2018 defence budget that cannot be accounted for; and R900m spent on Cuban mechanics maintaining vehicles...