By Mapaballo Borotho
- Four people were killed and several others, including three children, were injured in shootings in Mitchell’s Plain and Merrydale.
- The incidents have intensified concerns about rising crime despite the deployment of the SANDF in affected areas.
- Critics say the intervention lacks proper planning, resources, and intelligence-driven strategy.
Nine people were shot in Mitchell’s Plain, Cape Town, leaving four dead and three children between the ages of 6 and 14 injured.
Another young male was killed in a brazen shooting in Merrydale. Both shootings took place on Tuesday afternoon, 07 April 2026.
These shootings sent shockwaves across the Western Cape, with people questioning how crime continues to escalate despite the deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) in crime-stricken communities.
Nicholas Gotsell, DA Member of Parliament on Security & Justice, says the reality is that the deployment is not intelligence-driven and is not covering large parts of ganglands simultaneously.
“Between 30 March and 5 April 2026, the Cape Flats recorded 36 murders and 47 attempted murders. These are not just statistics. These are 36 families who now have to bury loved ones.
Today, it appears that not even 250 soldiers have arrived in Cape Town, one of the worst-affected gang hotspots in South Africa.
After a full week, there have been no notable arrests, drug busts or operational breakthroughs to demonstrate measurable success,” he said.
Gotsell says the government did not have a plan when deploying the SANDF, emphasising that deployments of this nature must be disciplined, intelligence-driven, and properly resourced.
“It is equally concerning that basic policing resources remain unavailable. At Mitchell’s Plain alone, 12 visible policing vehicles and eight detective vehicles have been sitting out of service. A deployment cannot succeed if police cannot respond quickly or investigate cases properly.”
He said the people of the Cape Flats do not need partial deployments or shifting numbers. They need a real plan, full mobilisation, and leadership that matches the urgency of the crisis.
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