Army street patrols too costly

Since lockdown was enforced almost 10 months ago, the South African National Defence Force haven’t exactly endeared themselves to the public. Patrolling the streets as back-up to the police at the behest of the president, some soldiers forcing rule-breakers to do push-ups and other physical exercises. Their presence in public spaces is certainly not welcome, especially on closed beaches. Their actions that led to the death of Collins Khosa still rankle.

To make matters worse, it has been revealed that the latest deployment of 2 122 soldiers to enforce lockdown Level 3 cost us R95 million a month. That’s R95 million we just don’t have to throw around.

When, oh when, are we going to start spending taxpayers’ money frugally?