Thapelo Molefe
The first official Cabinet meeting of the 7th administration took place this week and Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said the Cabinet is satisfied with the crackdown of criminal activities in South Africa and said law enforcement agencies must take the credit for that.
Ntshavheni said the police’s Operation Shanela has ensured the arrest of 756 237 suspects for various crimes, and 161 752 of these were wanted suspects for priority crimes such as murder, cash in transit heists, armed robberies, and rape, among other violent crimes.
She said this while briefing the media on Wednesday on the Cabinet meeting’s outcomes. The Cabinet expressed satisfaction with the crackdown on illegal activities and has renewed its request for the people to collaborate with law enforcement to make the country safer, she said.
“Cabinet welcomes the continued successes of law enforcement agencies in the arrest of members of organised crime syndicates and gangs as part of the ongoing fight against crime,” Ntshavheni said.
The Minister said the Cabinet welcomed the shutting down of an illegal military training camp in White River, Mpumalanga, following an intelligence-driven multidisciplinary law enforcement operation that has also resulted in the arrest of 95 Libyan nationals.
The Libyans appeared in court on Monday on charges of contravening the Immigration Act, and the Magistrate Eddie Hall postponed the matter to 26 August, following applications by both the state and defence for a postponement.
Hall held that the accused will remain in custody until the next trial date.
Speaking ahead of the trial, provincial National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) spokesperson Monica Nyuswa said the foreign nationals stood accused of misrepresenting their visa applications for allegedly applying for study visas. However, their subsequent exposure in the midst of military training called into question their intentions.
Nyuswa confirmed that currently 91 of the accused are being held in a correctional facility, while the remaining four are in police custody.
The Libyan government has denied links to the individuals and indicated that it will work with the South African government in order to get to the bottom of things.
INSIDE POLITICS
