High time to revive commando system

AfriForum Community Safety has invited the Minister of Defence, Thandi Modise, to meet with the organisation. This follows after the minister during a recent debate on cross-border crime, said that certain aspects of the former commando system should be brought back.

The commando system, which was disbanded in 2003, was an extremely effective security system where volunteers worked closely with the defence force in securing rural and border areas. The dissolution of the commandos created a golden opportunity for criminals in rural areas to exploit the gap in law enforcement and its consequences are still plain to see.

AfriForum has 159 neighbourhood watch structures nationwide and around 10 000 trained volunteers who play an active role in keeping their communities safe.

“It is high time that the government realises that civilian safety structures such as neighbourhood watches play an effective and necessary role in the fight against crime, therefore, we welcome the minister’s statement and would like to talk to her about the finer details of the proposal,” says Jacques Broodryk, Spokesperson for Community Safety at AfriForum.

“AfriForum Community Safety have extensive experience in establishing and managing community safety structures within the law. We are willing to share this experience with the minister to ensure that, should such a commando system be reinstated, it will be effective and not just another one of the government’s public relations exercises as we saw with the recent deployment of the so-called Border Management Authority (BMA) guards,” concludes Broodryk.