Parliament’s Joint Standing Committee on Defence has backed the deployment of 510 soldiers in KwaZulu-Natal, and asked the army for a full breakdown of its cost.
The committee said on Friday that it supports the SANDF working alongside the police in a province where it sees “destruction, instability and related criminality”. Parliament’s statement said the right to protest is protected by the Constitution but must be used with regard for other people’s rights.
The numbers come from the Presidency. Its notice of 27 October said 510 members of the SANDF would work with the South African Police Service in support of Operation Prosper. The period runs from 9 October to 30 November, and the expected expenditure is R34,082,720.
That period began 18 days before the notice was issued. Over the 53 days, the expected cost works out to about R643,000 a day.
The timing drew criticism. The committee said late deployment notices to Parliament are a continuing problem, and that they go against section 201(2)(a) of the Constitution and section 19 of the Defence Act, 42 of 2002. It acknowledged the urgency of the deployment and the SANDF’s swift response.
Parliament’s statement said notifying Parliament in good time, for internal and external deployments alike, lets it do its constitutional oversight work. The committee resolved to write to the presiding officers of Parliament about the recurring delays. Ramaphosa had told those same officers of the decision in his notice, which cited the same section of the Constitution.
It also asked the SANDF for a detailed breakdown of the costs, so that the spending can be accounted for. The Presidency has so far given one expected total and no split between items such as pay, transport and equipment.
A committee report will go to the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces, recommending that both Houses note the deployment. The statement was issued on behalf of the committee’s co-chairpersons, Mike Hala and Phiroane Phala.
The Presidency described the deployment as cooperation with the police, with the soldiers on standby in case police need them, according to our earlier report. The committee’s statement does not say where in the province the soldiers are based, and gives no number of incidents or arrests.
The statement does not say when the SANDF must provide the costs, or when the report will be tabled. The deployment is due to end on 30 November, and the Presidency has not said whether it will ask for an extension.
