Letters

Dear Editor SAPS has, after more than three months of inaction and sustained DA pressure, finally called up two Cape Town K9 handlers and their dogs for specialist narcotics training at Roodeplaat. The Democratic Alliance (DA) has therefore written to the National Police Commissioner to demand urgent answers on: Why all six Cape Town K9s …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) demands the immediate court-martial of SANDF Chief, General Rudzani Maphwanya, for gross misconduct and a flagrant breach of the SANDF Code of Conduct following his recent political pronouncements in Tehran. According to Iranian state media, General Maphwanya went far beyond his constitutional and professional mandate, pledging “common goals” with …

Dear Editor One hundred learners from Gobizizwe Agricultural School near Mthatha have reportedly been hospitalised following a suspected mass food poisoning incident late yesterday. Paramedics and health officials attended to pupils who complained of stomach cramps, vomiting, and diarrhoea, before transferring the most serious cases to nearby hospitals for urgent treatment. Initially, 70 learners were …

Dear Editor The ANC’s tepid response to the DA’s plan to turbocharge the economy, responding only with a mild defence of BEE, shows that the BEE edifice can and must be dismantled. Laughably, the ANC called on beneficiaries of BEE to defend the system. The reality is that there are millions of unemployed South Africans …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) is demanding urgent answers from the Government Pensions Administration Agency (GPAA) over the alleged shocking R1 billion lease agreement with Shula Developers for a building neither owned nor accessible by Shula Developers. The DA supports the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Public Service and Administration, Jan De Villiers’, …

Dear Editor While the latest Q2 Quarterly Labour Force Survey from StatsSA has shown an overall increase in the number of unemployed South Africans, in the construction sector there has been some good news: the latest data shows that the construction sector has added 20 000 jobs between April and July 2025, and 55 000 …

Dear Editor Residents of Egoli in Buffalo City’s Ward 10, have been left without basic sanitation after public toilets built in 2016 in Muvhango, an informal settlement within Egoli, have fallen into disrepair and are now in a dilapidated state. This public toilet facility has no protective fencing or barriers to prevent vandalism. The facility, …

Dear Editor The DA has submitted a PAIA application to the South African Hajj & Umrah Council (SAHUC) to obtain clarity on its decision to give itself full control over Hajj tour operations in South Africa. Under this new system, tour operators will no longer be allowed to independently manage Hajj trips. Instead, they will …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance is outraged that the Chief of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), General Rudzani Maphwanya, used an official visit to Tehran this week to engage in blatant political diplomacy far outside his constitutional and professional mandate. According to Iranian state media, General Maphwanya went well beyond military-to-military discussions. He …

Dear Editor The DA is deeply concerned by the results of the latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS), showing that unemployment continues to increase in South Africa – showing that there is immediate urgency to implement what the DA has been demanding: make the economic reforms necessary for growth and jobs. The DA has launched …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) welcomes the the game-changing move by Home Affairs to make Smart ID and Passport applications available in the coming months on the banking apps of Capitec Bank, First National Bank (FNB), and Standard Bank. This service will start with Smart ID and Passport services rolling out at selected branches …

Dear Editor The DA has written to the Acting Minister of Police, Prof Firoz Cachalia, to request that the South African Police Service (SAPS) deploys public order policing to uphold the rule of law and protect individuals’ constitutional rights to access to healthcare properties where Operarion Dudula is blocking access. The DA utterly condemns Operation …

Dear Editor A reply to a DA Parliamentary question reveals that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) cannot track whether SAPS arrests for illegal firearm possession lead to prosecutions or convictions. This is because SAPS’ crime records and the courts’ case management systems are not linked and many arrests are never properly recorded in the first …

Dear editor In light of the 30% tariff the United States has placed on South African exports, it is encouraging that our agricultural sector is rapidly diversifying its markets. This important work is being led by Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen, whose efforts are helping to protect farmers, safeguard jobs, and keep our economy resilient …

Dear Editor The DA in the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) has written to the Select Committee on Security and Justice, Chairperson, Ms Jane Mananiso MP, demanding urgent oversight into the state of outdated technology infrastructure crippling policing in KwaZulu-Natal. This follows an oversight engagement I conducted with the KZN NCOP delegation and SAPS provincial …

Dear Editor The DA will write to the chair of the parliamentary portfolio committee on health, Dr Sibongiseni Dhlomo, to request the appearance of the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), the national and Free State Departments of Health, and the senior management of the Pelonomi Tertiary Hospital in Parliament. The South African Human Rights …

Dear Editor The DA notes the recent announcement by NSFAS that it is conducting a legal review into its student accommodation management and third-party partnerships. While this step is welcome, it comes far too late for the thousands of students who have already endured evictions, unsafe living conditions, and severe academic disruption due to delayed …

Dear Editor The DA has strongly championed the goal of non-racialism as a core value of our party. There is no place for race based division in South Africa, no matter from who or from where it comes. The DA expects that this matter will be dealt with in line with the same standards as …

Dear Editor Minister Parks Tau’s decision to sideline one ANC-linked bid for the lotto licence due to conflict-of-interest concerns, only to award it to another bid linked to the Deputy President’s family, raises far more questions than answers. The DA will continue to seek answers on this clearly flawed process through our PAIA application and …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) welcomes the gazetting of two sets of draft regulations under the Basic Education Laws Amendment (BELA) Act for public comment. These include: Draft School Admissions Regulations, and Draft Regulations on the Determination of School Capacity. This marks a critical milestone in the journey from policy adoption to practical implementation, …

Dear Editor Yesterday, PRASA unlawfully blocked me, a sitting Member of Parliament, from conducting an oversight inspection at its Braamfontein yard and train carriage store. This yard is at the centre of a R7.5 billion train refurbishment scandal. I was joined by DA councillors from the City of Johannesburg to assess the state of PRASA’s …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) welcomes the bold corruption-busting move by Minister Dean Macpherson as he lays criminal charges against suspended IDT CEO Tebogo Malaka, who featured in a video yesterday passing a brown envelope of R60 000 to a journalist. But as this corruption-busting move from the DA Minister takes place, the DA …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) condemns the ANC’s latest manoeuvre to shield Defence Minister Angie Motshekga from accountability over the missing R813 million earmarked for SANDF soldiers deployed to the DRC. This week, Joint Standing Committee on Defence (JSCD) Chairperson, Malusi Gigaba, issued a contradictory and evasive statement in which he effectively confirmed that …