Police Minister Bheki Cele has dismissed speculation that is South Africa facing a security threat due to challenges being encountered by some of the country’s security services.
Responding to questions raised during a debate on Monday night on President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) delivered on February 10, Cele said there was no threat to the stability of the country.
“I repeat, there is no threat to the stability of this country. Some components of the security services of this country may be limping but they are not down and they are certainly not out!” he said.
Questions had been raised about the ability of South Africa to remain stable following some not-so-convincing response by the police in the aftermath of last July’s civil unrest that triggered widespread looting and violence in parts of the country.
The police were invisible for several days while protesters looted shops in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng provinces and only resurfaced once the army was deployed.
In his SONA delivery, Ramaphosa announced plans to put together a response plan to address the weaknesses identified in the report of the panel of experts that investigated the 2021 unrest.
JN/APA