Thobeka Ngema|Published
Internal conflict has surfaced within the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) following KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli's support for deploying military personnel to assist police in handling violent demonstrations in Durban.
IFP eThekwini deputy mayoral candidate Sizwe “Mavava” Sikhakhane accused Ntuli of damaging the party’s campaign and undermining its political message, while security experts warned that delaying intervention could have allowed the unrest to escalate.
“What Mphemba (Ntuli clan name) did was de-campaign us as the IFP, not just us but everyone trying to bring positive change in eThekwini and KwaZulu-Natal,” Sikhakhane said.
“We need to know what role the police played which led to soldiers being called in.”
Looking back at July 2021, Sikhakhane said that they fought against President Cyril Ramaphosa deploying soldiers. Today he felt the same way he did then, as he was one of those crying.
“Mphemba didn’t consider us. He is not the same Mphemba we uplifted to lead the province so our people can be helped,” Sikhakhane said.
“I think the IFP should call him to a disciplinary committee or take whatever steps they can to address what he did, such as killing the IFP, the IFP’s campaign, or the people of KZN as a whole.”
In response, Ntuli acknowledged that KZN people have the right to protest; no one should prevent them from exercising their right.
“What we will not accept is anyone vandalising businesses, factories, or infrastructure belonging to the government because doing so sets us back,” Ntuli said, adding that infrastructure must be protected.
“That’s why in eThekwini, when the police cried that those who were going around burning down businesses, injuring people and burning houses were beyond their numbers, I said yes, the soldiers can come to help.
“I know some will criticise this stance. They criticise because they lack a clear idea of the plan to destroy the whole of KwaZulu-Natal. This started in eThekwini, and it was going to spread to other areas.”
Ntuli emphasised that voters should not be misled by falsehoods suggesting the presence of soldiers should deter them from supporting the IFP. Instead, he argued that people should vote for the IFP in response to the burning of businesses, widespread looting, and rising criminality.
Crime and policing consultant Dr Johan Burger said Ntuli’s actions must be looked at against the background of the July 2021 violence, where over 300 people were killed.
Because the military and police responded extremely late back then, leading to an expert panel blaming leaders for the slow reaction, the premier faced a difficult situation where waiting too long would have brought the same criticism, he said.
“One should understand the concerns that the premier had for making that call. If he waited too long, he would have been blamed if things were completely out of hand. There were several very, very serious incidents of violence, damage to infrastructure, the burning of vehicles, looting, and so on,” Burger explained.
“One must have some sympathy with him. There will always be a debate, I think: did he act too quickly, or should he have waited?”
Political analyst Professor Sipho Seepe said there are two points to consider: political and national.
From a national perspective, Seepe explained that frequent military deployment into communities risks turning soldiers into enemies of the people, undermining necessary political engagement, and diverting the defence force from its core duty of defending the country.
“The soldiers are not supposed to be dealing with issues of unrest. We need to have properly trained police. We need to have properly trained intelligence to be able to deal with that. But also we need political leaders to also play a role,” Seepe said.
Then, politically, Seepe said critics of the deployment are correct that legitimate democratic governments rely on public engagement rather than brute force.
“The sense that people will get is that those who are saying from the IFP that we can engage our people, such deployment sends the wrong message,” Seepe said.