More than 40 illegal miners arrested in separate incidents in the North West
JOHANNESBURG - More than 40 zama zamas have been arrested in separate incidents in the North West this week, as police in the province continue with Operation Vala Umgodi to clamp down on illegal mining.
The group, aged between 18 and 47, face various charges, including the Contravention of the Immigration Act.
North West police spokesperson Adele Myburgh said the latest arrests were made in Sun City, Mogwase and Tlhabane.
'All mentioned suspects will appear in the Bafokeng and Mankwe Magistrates' Courts, respectively. The suspects are from different countries, including Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi, Ethiopia, Swaziland, Nigeria and Lesotho.'
The North West is among seven provinces impacted by illegal mining, with a massive operation leading to the arrest of hundreds of illegal miners in Stilfontein earlier this year.
Myburgh said police are worried about the involvement of foreign nationals in the commission of crime, threatening the country's national security.
'The involvement of foreign nationals in the commission of crime, whether aided or abetted by South Africans, poses a serious threat to national security and as such requires a collaborative effort by civil society and various government's security and social departments such as the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), Border Management Authority, Customs/ South African Revenue Services (SARS), Home Affairs Immigration, Department of Mineral Resources and Energy (DMRE), Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations (DPCI) and the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA).'
ALSO READ: Mantashe admits he has no sympathy for illegal miners who get trapped underground
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She began her NDPP tenure in early 2019 amid much fanfare. Her impressive resume and the promises she made to turn the NPA into a well-oiled machine endeared her to many South Africans. Even Paul Hoffman of the Institute for Accountability in Southern Africa acknowledges that Batohi started with the best intentions but has failed to enforce the law effectively This means even good and competent people cannot thrive in a country where institutions are weak and the culture of holding people accountable is non-existent. This explains why her honeymoon lasted much longer. South Africans believed and had high hopes that her tenure would be different from those of her inept predecessors. Calling for Batohi to step down is similar to Manchester United and Kaizer Chiefs supporters calling for a change of coaches in order to return the Red Devils and Chiefs to their glory days. As we have seen, changing coaches has not changed Manchester United's poor performances. Similarly, calling for Batohi to step down is not going to solve the NPA's problems. Batohi, to all intents and purposes, appears to have become the pawn in the dysfunctional criminal justice system. This is happening in a country with no political will to combat crime, especially corruption. South Africa's whole criminal justice system is fundamentally flawed and, suffice it to say that it is rotten to the core. Until this elephant in the room is addressed, South Africa will remain helpless in its fight against rampant and brazen crime. The problem of widespread crime and the helplessness of law enforcement agencies to combat it made international headlines when President Ramaphosa recently visited the White House. After 6 years as the NDPP, Batohi's tenure is marked by spectacular missteps and unsuccessful prosecutions. Batohi has put the blame for the NPA's ineffectiveness on the shortage of skills across crime-fighting agencies. The NPA depends on the inept and corrupt SAPS, the Hawks, and other law enforcement agencies to effectively perform its duties. Bafana Bafana's Senzo Meyiwa and rapper AKA's high-profile cases illustrate this problem. The Sunday Times reports that Batohi also made claims that the NPA is 'infiltrated' by unscrupulous prosecutors working in cahoots with criminals to deliberately bungle cases. She later backtracked on her serious allegations, presumably after being pressured by the Justice Minister, Mmamoloko Kubayi. One suspects that the Minister of Justice is doing some damage control by convincing Batohi to retract her comments about 'infiltration.' Clearly, claims of infiltration make the government appear weak and helpless in the fight against crime. Von Clausewitz once warned that 'war is the continuation of politics by other means.' So is Law. Political interference in legal matters is not something that is unique to South Africa. Apartheid era judges enforced unjust laws, and US presidents continue to appoint judges on an ideological basis. There is reason to believe that political interference is at play in post-apartheid South Africa. The shortage of skills, together with widespread corruption in state institutions, has made her job no easier and her tenure no different from those of her predecessors. One suspects that this is by design to protect powerful politicians from prosecution. Since Batohi took charge of the NPA more than six years ago, not a single high-profile politician has been convicted of corruption charges. This is despite many commissions of inquiry, such as the Zondo commission, that have fingered prominent politicians for wrongdoing and breaking the law. The issue that many people ignore is that prominent politicians such as Jacob Zuma have used delaying tactics to evade justice. So, should Batohi do the honourable thing and resign if she cannot fix the NPA? Some South Africans have accused Batohi of not putting enough pressure on the government to establish an anti-corruption body independent of the Executive branch's control. Since the demise of the Scorpions, no law enforcement agency has been effective in investigating cases of corruption. The faith in Batohi among South Africans during the beginning of her tenure as the NDPP was as strong as black America's expectations that Barack Obama would be their messiah instead of being the American president. It appears that South Africans expected too much from Batohi as an individual and lost sight of the dysfunctionality in the law enforcement institutions across the board and the lack of political will to fight crime. Similarly, Batohi appears to have naively expected that her position would make the NPA become an effective weapon in the fight against crimes such as rape, murder, and corruption. As a seasoned prosecutor since 1986, Batohi should have known better. She was aware of the challenges she would face working in the public sector, where corruption is endemic. Corruption is widespread in the public and private sectors, but not a single high-profile politician has been convicted. This is despite the Zondo commission and many other commissions having fingered senior leaders in government and in the state-owned enterprises, such as Eskom, for corruption. The bungled prosecutions of the Gupta brothers, Zizi Kodwa, and others have undermined the integrity and credibility of the NPA. The acquittal of Nigerian pastor, Timothy Omotoso, and the withdrawal of charges against Moroadi Cholota appear to have been the final straw for those calling for Batohi to step down. Like her predecessor, Shaun Abrahams, if Batohi does not resign, she risks being remembered as a lapdog. The recent court findings against the NPA add to a number of its spectacular failures. Zakhele Collison Ndlovu Image: File
