FOR years, communities on the Cape Flats have been plagued by gun violence, gang fights over drug turf, and the tragedy of child murders, to name a few.
Communities and organisations rallied for the president to hear the cries of affected mothers and families to deploy the SANDF to stabilise their communities.
For many, it was a massive relief and a small victory when the president announced that the SANDF would be deployed in the Western Cape during his State of the Nation Address (SONA) last week.
However, some feel that the army’s presence will only be a temporary solution to a bigger problem.
A resident from Delft, who wants to protect her identity, said that they are living among murderers.
The inwooner said: “We welcome the coming of the National Defence Force, but that is not the solution; we need successful convictions.
“The court of law is what’s actually failing us.
“We live among murderers, rapists, and hardcore criminals who have serious cases against them, but they are outside in the same communities where they committed these crimes.
“What about those victims and their families who never got to see justice?”
The resident added that this fear has led to hopelessness and a lack of faith in policing.
She added: “That is also why people are not forthcoming with information because the witnesses are not protected.
“We have seen witnesses intimidated and also killed. That is why victims stay silent and don’t open cases because they have lost faith in the justice system.
“They say ‘los maar, hulle gaan niks oorkom nie’, because the criminals can get away with murder. It is a sick cycle.
“When the army comes, I don’t think the crime is going to stop; there are still people who are going to continue doing illegal acts.
“We see criminals being arrested then they are out again, we see drug houses being raided by police but they find nothing then moments later the tik koppies come and buy drugs at the same spot police just raided.
“I am tired of going to court and hearing stories from my community saying, ‘die saak is uitgeskop’.”
Bullets seem to be the order of the day in various communities when gun violence is rife.
A mass shooting in Sunbird Court, Athlone claimed the lives of two adult females and a nine-month-old baby on 17 February 2026 at a drughouse.
In December, nine-year-old Zachariah Matthee was brutally murdered, alongside two adults, in a pella pos in Rocklands Mitchells Plain
Yusuf Abramjee, an Anti-Crime Activist and host of Crime Watch on eTV and eNCA, suggests that police reform and targeting organised crime are the real solutions.
Abramjee explained: “The deployment of the SANDF in the Western Cape, particularly in Cape Town, can provide short-term stabilisation and visible support to overstretched SAPS units in identified hotspots.
”However, it must be emphasised that soldiers are not a permanent solution to criminal violence.
”The SANDF does not investigate crimes, gather intelligence, or build prosecutable cases, functions that lie squarely with the police and specialised law-enforcement units.
”Gun violence in the Western Cape is being driven largely by organised criminal networks, gang warfare, illegal firearms trafficking and weak border controls.
”Until these syndicates and their supply chains are dismantled, violence will persist regardless of troop deployments.
“Addressing the root causes requires a multi-pronged, sustained strategy, including a major overhaul of crime intelligence and detective services, dedicated task teams to target gun-running syndicates and corrupt officials.
”Faster ballistics processing and improved forensic capacity, consistent, high-visibility policing in hotspot areas, stronger community-police partnerships are crucial.
”In short, the SANDF can help create breathing space, but the real solution lies in professional, well-resourced policing, effective intelligence, and political will to take on organised crime at its core.”
Alderman JP Smith Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security echoed the same sentiments.
He told the Daily Voice: “Stabilisation is not enough, we need convictions.
“I note the announcement by the President during his address at SONA that the military will be deployed to Cape Town to support the police in preventing gang violence.
”I support all measures aimed at reducing crime in the Western Cape, particularly given the failure of SAPS, under the control of national government, to adequately secure the city against violent crime.
”However, as with previous deployments, I know that stabilisation alone is not sufficient if criminals continue to roam freely and case dockets go missing.
”I demand that the criminals terrorising communities in the Western Cape are arrested and successfully prosecuted.
“It cannot be that case dockets go missing, cases are withdrawn, or investigations go cold, resulting in criminals never seeing their day in court.”
Smith called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to grant the Western Cape provincial government more policing powers that will allow the City’s safety directorate to investigate cases.
He said: ”I call on the President to think not only in the short term, but also in the long term.
“It is time for the expansion of Metro Police's policing powers to include investigations, intelligence-gathering, and forensic powers so that we can begin bringing criminals to book and keep our communities safe in the long run.
”Refocus the Provincial Murder, illegal firearms and gang committees to start working effectively and address the decay within the National Prosecuting Authority urgently.
”The SANDF is needed only because the National Government has steadily eroded SAPS numbers and capacity in the province. Their presence can assist with stabilisation, but only a functioning criminal justice system will keep communities safe.
“City enforcement stands ready to play a meaningful role.”