Parliament may soon be pulled directly into the heart of the Cape Flats’ gang-ravaged neighbourhoods after the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) launched a new bid to confront the surge in deadly violence gripping the Western Cape.
The party has formally called for an Ad Hoc Committee to be established in the National Assembly, a move aimed at forcing lawmakers to examine the crisis not from afar, but inside the communities most affected, as reported by EWN.
EFF MP Nazier Paulsen says the proposal goes beyond paperwork and committee rooms. If approved, MPs would travel to four of the country’s most dangerous precincts – Mfuleni, Kraaifontein, Delft and Gugulethu – to host public hearings and listen directly to residents who live with a daily fear of crossfire. He describes these areas as places where ‘tension never lifts’, with families trapped in the middle of long-standing gang rivalries.
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According to Paulsen, the problem is far deeper than the shootouts that make headlines. He argues that the Western Cape’s entrenched unemployment, especially among young people, has created a vacuum that criminal networks fill with speed. With legitimate work scarce and social programmes thin, he says the illegal drug trade becomes an irresistible alternative economy, and wherever the drug trade takes root, gangs follow.
‘When joblessness dominates, the drug economy steps in,’ Paulsen explained. ‘And the moment it does, rival groups fight for control. Ordinary people, not gang members, become the ones who end up dying.’ He warns that without tackling the conditions that allow gangs to flourish, policing alone will never stop the bloodshed.
Paulsen also raised concerns that have surfaced in previous inquiries: that some police officials are compromised. He referenced findings that gang bosses have managed to access classified information from within the police service.
For communities already distrustful of law enforcement, he says this makes the situation intolerable. ‘How can people feel protected when the police appear to be working for the very criminals terrorising them?’ he asked.
If Parliament adopts the EFF’s proposal, the committee’s findings would carry weight, and its recommendations would become binding on the executive.
Paulsen believes this could finally force government departments to redirect resources into the precincts facing the most trauma, giving residents a chance at stability after years of violence.
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Picture: Lubabalo Lesolle / Gallo Images
