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Police are seen alongside members of the army in Cape Town as part of efforts to fight crime in this image captured on 01 April 2026.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) member of the National Council of Provinces representative on the Judicial Services Commission, Nicholas Gotsell, has expressed doubt on the effectiveness of the army deployment on the Cape Flats.
He says the army lacks a clear operational plan, measurable goals and adequate intelligence.
He added that this raises questions about whether the army is making any real impact in curbing gang violence.
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He says a week into the army deployment, violence continues unabated.
“There has been no impact, we’ve seen in the past two days, and certainly have seen since the start of the deployment, that in fact murders on the Cape Flats have just continued. In fact, I think it has increased. Two days ago, there were nine shootings in Mitchell’s Plain in one day.”
“This was not far off from where the army and the SAPS were running their operation. I assess that they are severely hamstrung by intelligence; they don’t have any intelligence,” adds Gotsell.
PODCAST | Below is the full interview with Nicholas Gotsell
