EFF statement on Minister Ayanda Dlodlo deliberately misleading the public on intel regarding riots
21 July 2021
The EFF calls for the immediate removal and impeachment of Minister of State Security Ayanda Dlodlo, for deliberately misleading the public and parliament about non-existent intel that cautioned government on the "Release Zuma" riots.
On the 16 July 2021, the EFF wrote to Minister of State Security to provide evidence that her department possessed Intelligence about the possible riots or activities instigating riots/unrest. This followed her public claims that SSA had Intelligence, forwarded it to the SAPS and Minister Bheki Cele yet nothing was done. She was quoted as saying: "We analysed and packaged information for the client, we gave it to them. Minister Cele said that intelligence is driving operations. We gave SAPS all the information they needed to plan for these riots." (TheSouthAfrican.com)
The EFF asked her to respond, amongst others, to the following key questions:
Was an Intelligence product generated by the SSA which indicated that there will be blockades of certain roads, e.g., N3 Mooi River Plaza and attack on Malls or commercial centres in Durban following the arrest of former President Jacob Zuma?
When was this report generated? Who was it given and on which day?
Specifically, who at the SAPS was it given to and on which day?
Did you personally share this report with Minister Bheki Cele and President Cyril Ramaphosa?
E. If so, when did you share this report with them?
Minister Ayanda Dlodlo has not responded to these questions. Moreover, the EFF can confirm that such information was never shared or given to the Parliament Joint Standing Committee on Intelligence despite claims by officials in the SSA to possess it.
The implications of Minister Ayanda Dlodlo's statement is that government knew about the possible blockade of roads and attacks on malls as instigations for a riot or public unrest, but elected to do nothing, which amounts to treason. Over 200 people lost their lives, and thousands more, their livelihoods have been destroyed. If government allowed this to happen, then it has perpetuated a crime against humanity and those responsible must be held accountable.
The EFF can place it on public record that Minister Ayanda Dlodlo and the SSA never had any Intelligence product generated to foresee key events of the riots. There was no intelligence product which warned about the blockades of N3 Mooi River Plaza, the attack of commercial centres/malls, or even the marches by hostel dwellers. Neither did they send such an intelligence product to the SAPS or the Minister of Police. To this day, they cannot provide, even to the JSCI, any shred of evidence to support any of the claims that they informed government about the planned activities and that government elected to ignore or do nothing about them.
This is evidence of how dangerous Minister Ayanda Dlodlo is to the national security and stability of our country. She is part of information paddlers who lie to our people to protect their utter incompetence. She has misled the public, and her officials in the SSA have deliberately misled parliament in order to hide their utter incompetence and negligence.
It is a fact that Intelligence agencies of our country did not foresee any of the key events leading or sparking the riots. They are all dysfunctional, internally compromised by infiltration and fractionalisation. They have all been incapable of doing their duty on the ANC factional battles and the threat they pose to national security and stability.
This is because many of their principals are part of ANC factional battles and have used intelligence agencies to settle political scores.
Issued by Vuyani Pambo, National Spokesperson, EFF, 21 July 2021
