The deployment of the army to Nelson Mandela Bay has been widely welcomed, with many seeing it as a strong step towards restoring safety and stability in affected communities.
Though some senior police officers have cautioned that soldiers alone cannot resolve long-standing challenges such as vehicle shortages, limited resources and strained specialised units within the SAPS, there is optimism that their presence will significantly enhance visibility and support crime-fighting efforts.
Transport and community safety MEC Xolile Nqatha said on Friday that the deployment in the Eastern Cape — particularly in the northern areas of Gqeberha and further afield in Mthatha — was a positive and much-needed intervention.
Nqatha said they were not expecting any tensions between police officers and soldiers on the ground.
“The SAPS will concentrate on their work and the army will support them,” Nqatha said.
He said two years ago, premier Oscar Mabuyane asked President Cyril Ramaphosa to deploy the army. Engagements were then held.
Nqatha said the details were still being ironed out.
On Sunday, DA MPL Yusuf Cassim said though the party had fought hard for the deployment in the past weeks, prioritising sending in soldiers without resolving underlying causes, including lack of resources for police and lack of job opportunities, would not address crime.
He said the intention of deploying soldiers would be to stabilise affected areas but more needed to be done, including establishing schools for skills in the northern areas and setting up public drug rehabilitation centres.
The government, he said, also needed to increase the capacity of police, especially anti-gang and crime intelligence units, to enable them to execute their duties.
During a visit to the Bay late in 2025, DA MP and parliamentary committee on police chair Ian Cameron said there was still a lack of operational vehicles in the anti-gang unit and flying squad despite the recommendations in a report released by the committee.
“It’s not a flying squad, but a dying squad,” Cassim said.
There are only two trained drug-sniffer dogs in the Bay.
“We have these specialised units but they are being hollowed out.”
Acting police minister Firoz Cachalia announced in parliament last week that SAPS national commissioner Fannie Masemola and chief of army Lieut-Gen Lawrence Mbatha had met to finalise the deployment plan in the Eastern Cape.
Cachalia said the SANDF deployment would begin in the next 10 days.
Police ministry spokesperson Kamogelo Mogotsi said on Sunday that a detailed joint statement would be issued once the plan was finalised.
However, there have already been mixed sentiments about the deployment, with some senior officers saying this would not resolve crime in the long run if the lack of resources was not addressed.
Others believed there should be demarcated zones for soldiers.
A senior officer said station commanders in Bethelsdorp, Gelvandale, Kamesh, Chatty and Algoa Park were called in to a high-level meeting recently to deliberate on the deployment decision.
“These are known as gangs’ stations and most of them are in the northern areas,” the officer said.
“I’m not sure what happened after that meeting, but I don’t think we need soldiers. We are more than capable to deal with this, but we need resources.”
There will come a point when the soldiers will have to leave, and when they do, it will still be like we don’t do our work because of a lack of resources.
— Officer
She said police had been crippled by a lack of vehicles. “We once had one car for the whole of Algoa Park.
“All our cars were in garages.
“Most of them have more than 300,000km on the clock and are expected to run 24 hours a day. They are used shift after shift.”
A second police official said outsourcing service providers to supply car parts and police uniforms was a challenge.
“Simple things like the ordering and delivery of tyres is problematic. Suppliers take days.
“Sometimes we end up paying from our own pockets to fix minor things.
“Female officers even buy their own boots because the ones they have are uncomfortable.”
The officer warned that soldiers were not trained to deal with communities.
“I don’t know how they will assist. Soldiers use live rounds. They don’t have blanks.
“We are more than capable, but the problem is resources. I cannot recall the last time that we got new bulletproof vests. We wear worn-out ones.
“There will come a point when the soldiers will have to leave, and when they do, it will still be like we don’t do our work because of a lack of resources.
“They are going to be here with their vehicles and increase visibility, while we sit with the same problems.”
A third officer said the army would not make a difference in the long run.
“Their mandate is very different to the SAPS,” he said. “You can have the whole army here, but without proper planning and execution, nothing will change.”
What was required, he said, was for police to be reinforced with more officers.
“They must sort out the manpower and resources — that is our problem.
“Our communities sit the whole day in charge offices and wait for vans.”
He said the lack of resources hampered their work.
“At the dog unit, for instance, we have dog handlers for drugs and explosives with two old vehicles.”
He said at certain stations there were at least 16 to 25 people sharing two old vehicles.
“In some areas, seven detectives must share one or two vehicles.”
Bay district police community board chair Eddie Alexander said they supported the deployment. But, he said, this should be done in all areas hit by crime, including Motherwell, Kwazakhele, New Brighton, Zwide and the northern areas.
“Those are high crime areas where you have your murders and robberies,” Alexander said.
He said Central, “which is concentrated with drugs, prostitution and illegal foreigners, and Korsten, which is an area of much concern, should also not be left out”.
“With the assistance of the army, we can also clean up Korsten.”
For Gelvandale and Bethelsdorp, he said the focus should be on gangsterism. “We need to deal with drug peddling. That is where the support of the army comes in.”
He said roadblocks should be set up in spots where hijackings were prevalent, such as Motherwell. Soldiers should also be sent to Kariega to deal with gangsterism.
“I think what is also important to note is that the army must work with the police and the community policing forums and stakeholders.
“We must all play our role to support them when they come. The role of the army is clear — to support the police when they go to these areas.
“Remember in Helenvale and Kariega, police get stoned and don’t have the manpower. The support of the army will be appreciated.”
Alexander said the army should not take away police duties.
“The police will investigate, arrest and write dockets. That role will always be clear.
“It’s very important that all Bay communities support this.
“I don’t think we have any problems with the army coming in if it is well co-ordinated.
“When you tell the community that the police are winning against crime, they don’t believe it because to feel safe is more important. That’s why the army is needed.
“This will also free up some officers.”
Crime expert Zimisele Nxafani, a policing programme co-ordinator at Walter Sisulu University, said there should not be any tensions between police officers and soldiers because their duties emanated from different mandates.
“Policing work can’t be done alone and needs multiple resources,” Nxafani said. “The army is a force multiplier. Soldiers cannot replace policing.
He said their deployment was not a long-term solution.
“It should be an interim solution. Soldiers are not trained to interact with people and communities.”
Nxafani said the police were also to blame for the deployment.
To avoid army deployment, he said would need a productive, fair and non-corrupt police force.
“We need clean police who do their jobs.”
Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union spokesperson Richard Mamabolo said military support did not address the root causes of crime.
He said gang violence was driven by complex socioeconomic conditions, entrenched criminal economies and weaknesses in intelligence and investigative capacity.
“Long-term solutions require strengthened crime intelligence, expanded detective services, revitalised specialised anti-gang units, improved forensic capacity and sustained recruitment drives to boost police numbers nationally,” Mamabolo said.
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