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The IFP has criticized the ANC for what it believes is a failure to separate party and state.
- The IFP has criticized the ANC for what it believes is a failure to separate party and state.
- This follows a warning from the head of the SANDF to members of the defense forces not to get involved in politics.
- The IFP believes that national security agencies and the state apparatus should not be “biased or involved in internal political affairs.”
The IFP warned against South African National Defense Force (SANDF) generals involved in politics, saying the politicization of the force was “deeply troubling and indefensible.”
On Tuesday, SANDF chief Gen. Solly Shoke issued a warning to members, warning them not to get involved in political party affairs.
Shoke also distanced SANDF from any “alleged meeting in which high-ranking military personnel were invited to discuss political party issues.”
News24 reported Thursday that retired General Maomela “Mojo” Motau had organized an ANC cadre assembly and is said to have extended an invitation to current and former SANDF members, drawing the ire of the force chief.
A pamphlet, which called ANC “cadres” for a discussion scheduled for Sept. 25, resulted in the SANDF releasing an unprecedented press release on Wednesday, where Shoke warned members of the military not to get involved in political affairs. of matches.
Defended
Motau defended the event.
He said that the soldiers, who were ANC cadres, had the right to participate in such a discussion.
IFP spokesman Mkhuleko Hlengwa said that a “lack of appreciation of the difference between party and state” is at the root of many problems facing the country.
Hlengwa says the ANC’s Military Veterans Association uMkhonto we Sizwe (MKMVA) must be called to order.
the # AFRICAN NATIONAL CONGRESSparamilitary wing, uMkhonto we Sizwe Military Veterans Association (#MKMVA) must call the ANC to order and become involved in state affairs and must be held accountable for such statements.
– Inkatha Freedom Party (@IFPinParimony) September 26, 2020
“The continued existence of the MKMVA appendix as a paramilitary force of the ANC, despite the fact that all military formations prior to 1994 were dissolved and subsequently integrated into a new inclusive SANDF, is a threat to our constitutional democracy,” Hlengwa said.
We are no longer in a liberation struggle. Therefore, there is no justification for its existence. It is simply unheard of that there are two parallel military formations in a democratic country.
– Inkatha Freedom Party (@IFPinParimony) September 26, 2020
However, MKMVA and its dissident group of military veterans, the MK Council, have denounced the effort to get soldiers to discuss the ANC’s problems.
Deputy Defense Minister Thabang Makwetla said that it was indefensible for SANDF members to engage in partisan politics of the party, and that it could never be allowed.
Seriously
“The head of the defense force was right to take it seriously. Those are the officers who must carry out his orders and, if he allows the higher command of the defense to be partisan, he is allowing the possibility of his own orders being undermined or neglected by the institution, “he said.
Hlengwa added: “Members who serve in the SANDF must do so without political prejudice and remain impartial, fair and in service to protect, defend and safeguard all South Africans from any form of danger.
“The IFP appreciates the sentiments expressed by SANDF General Solly Shoke in calling on members who serve in the military to remain impartial and not engage in party political affairs.”
Hlengwa added that national security agencies and the state apparatus should not be “biased or involved in internal political affairs.”
He added that an incident, such as the use of a military aircraft by the ANC, was cause for concern, highlighting a “deliberate choice to ignore the separation of party and state.”
On Saturday night, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that he reprimanded Defense Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula and took away her three-month salary for her error in judgment regarding the ANC trip.
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