- A 10th woman has been found dead in Ekurhuleni in two months.
- The DA is demanding urgent accountability from SAPS and EMPD.
- Immediate action is needed to protect women and make communities safer.
Another woman has been found dead at Mooifontein Cemetery in Thembisa. This is now the 10th woman’s body found in Ekurhuleni in just two months.
On behalf of the DA, I would like to extend my deepest condolences to her family and loved ones. Another family must now face the unbearable pain of losing someone they love in circumstances no family should ever have to endure.
In Parliament, the DA has secured a debate for Tuesday 29 September to tackle the ongoing violent crime crisis in Ekurhuleni. In Gauteng, we will move for the SAPS and EMPD top leadership to urgently appear before the Provincial Legislature and account for policing failures and their plans to put an end to this crisis.
After the ninth body was found, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi said those responsible had “declared war against the state” and that the state would respond. Residents now need to see that response translated into decisive action on the ground.
President Ramaphosa cannot continue to remain silent without decisive action.
We need increased visible policing in affected communities, stronger cooperation between SAPS and the EMPD, properly resourced law enforcement, functioning streetlights and safer public spaces.
These investigations must also urgently identify those responsible and ensure that they are arrested, prosecuted and brought to justice.
Women should not have to change where they walk, where they run or how they live because they fear that they could be next.
Every new body that is discovered deepens that fear.
Ekurhuleni cannot accept this as normal. Protecting women must now be treated with the urgency this crisis demands.
We need action to make Ekurhuleni safe for all.