Dear Editor
The Democratic Alliance (DA) has written to Defence Minister Angie Motshekga, requesting a detailed breakdown of the SADC-funded allowances for troops, including how the payments are structured and where the remaining funds are being held.
It is concerning that soldiers from the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), deployed to the Democratic Republic of Congo under the SADC Mission are reportedly receiving only R34 000 per month, despite SADC allocating R108 000 per soldier.
This discrepancy raises serious questions about transparency and accountability. The South African government separately budgeted R5 billion for the mission – funds meant to cover operational costs, including troop allowances.
The SADC contribution is in addition to that and specifically intended to support deployed troops. Their salary advice, which some troops shared with the DA, suggests otherwise.
When questioned by the DA during the Joint Standing Committee on Defence on 9 May, SANDF’s Brigadier General Abotsi refused to talk “rands and cents,” claiming instead that “most of the monies are put into their accounts back home” and that the SANDF “becomes their welfare officers.”
This paternalistic justification not only ducks the central issue but also treats soldiers, risking their lives on foreign soil, as incapable of managing their own money.
If soldiers are receiving R34 000, where is the remaining R74 000 per month per soldier going?
The Minister must explain whether the remainder is being redirected, withheld, or simply vanished into a black hole of defence accounting.
This is the same department, after all, that recently spent millions on luxury Audi SUVs for top brass while ordinary troops in the DRC scrape by on a fraction of their entitled deployment allowances.
Additionally, if Abotsi’s claim is to be believed — that the money is being “looked after” until the troops return — then the Minister must confirm what exactly awaits them: a larger allowance payout or a box for Abotsi’s empty promises?
Regards
Nicholas Gotsell MP
DA NCOP Member on Security & Justice