Gigaba named Joint Standing Committee on Defence co-chair
Parliament’s Joint Standing Committee on Defence (JSCD), the third committee tasked with oversight of defence and military veterans, is constituted for the seventh administration...
Rethinking responses to coups in West Africa
ECOWAS should use its special summit on regional integration in 2025 to reconsider its approach to managing coups.
Recurrent coups since 2020 and the decision...
Ramaphosa explains Putin “friendship”
Elaborating on South Africa’s foreign policy at the weekend, President Cyril Ramaphosa made it clear he was not projecting “any particular country or bloc...
Latest elections widen Mozambique’s democratic deficit
On 9 October, Mozambique held its seventh general election since 1994, cementing its status as an electoral democracy. Multiparty polls have taken place over...
Africa’s citizens, not soldiers, must protect and demand democracy
Recent protests show that citizens can demand accountability from their leaders instead of waiting for coups to fix broken governments.
Despite decades of democracy, many...
Sovereignty of Chagos Archipelago returned to Mauritius
The western Indian Ocean's Chagos Archipelago, with the exception of Diego Garcia, is no longer part of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) and...
Revamping of South Africa’s spy apparatus underway
More than four years after it was completed, the South African government has implemented 64% of the recommendations in the High-Level Review Panel Report...
Russia and China bringing additional complications to Africa – Africom
External players in Africa, particularly China and Russia, are bringing additional complications to Africa, including destabilising influences, the head of the US military’s Africa...
South Africa declares neutrality and China steals the Waterkloof defence show
Until last week, during Africa Aerospace and Defence (AAD) shows, our premier defence industry trade exhibition held every two years, the US parked one...
Parliament defence committee hears SANDF is “deteriorating”
In the wake of presentations by senior defence and military academics, Parliament’s Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans (PCDMV) is on record as...
Ramaphosa to receive remains of struggle stalwarts
President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to receive the human remains of liberation stalwarts who perished in combat whilst in exile.
“The repatriation headed by the...
SA Cabinet hears FATF grey listing remedial work progressing
South Africa, according to a statement following a Cabinet meeting this week, still has to address “deficiencies on effectiveness” in 22 areas before the...
“Something is rotten in the state of South Africa” – Leon Schreiber
Minister of Home Affairs, Dr Leon Schreiber, held nothing back as he spoke in the National Assembly on 20 August, where he said the...
Libyan arrests at White River training camp smack of “government ignorance”
Viewed objectively, the hue and cry in connection with the arrest of 95 Libyans, apparently in South Africa under false pretences and undergoing what...
JSCD to have representatives from five political parties
If proposals set by Parliament’s Joint Rules Committee (JRC) are accepted, the Joint Standing Committee on Defence (JSCD) will see the African National Congress...
Joint Standing Committee on Defence composition not yet known
One of the three parliamentary defence oversight committees is up and running, a chair has been named for another and the third awaits direction...
Is the world finally growing weary of Kagame’s excesses?
Rwanda’s President Paul Kagame has cruised to another incredible 99%-plus victory in the country’s presidential elections. The latest results showed he had amassed 99.18%...
MK Party refuses to support defence budget allocation
Underfunding of the South African Department of Defence (DoD) has turned the defence force into a ‘drill squad with no capacity’ and an extended...
Government is actively working to improve cyber security – Minister in The Presidency
Cyber security is one component of South African Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni’s responsibilities with her “assuring” the country it is receiving the...
Mapisa-Nqakula corruption trial moved to Pretoria High Court
As expected, the next round of legal action involving former National Assembly (NA) Speaker and one-time defence and military veterans minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula will...
Six political parties on Parliamentary defence and veterans oversight committee
The newly constituted National Assembly (NA) Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans (PCDMV), in line with the multi-party government of national unity (GNU),...
EU to fund Kenya Defence Forces to the tune of $21 million plus
The defence component of Kenyan President William Ruto’s administration is on the receiving end of a 20 million euro (about $21.5 million) “assistance measure”...
Modise and Cele not returning to JCPS cluster
With a GNU (Government of National Unity) on the horizon for democratic South Africa’s seventh administration, new faces are expected among public arena representatives,...
Mapisa-Nqakula to face corruption charges alone
Former National Assembly (NA) Speaker and one-time minister of defence and military veterans, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, heard she will face charges of corruption by herself...
ANC and DA coalition: An effective force against crime? Compatibility test says yes
The African National Congress (ANC) and the Democratic Alliance (DA) share a common goal of improving policing, but have different approaches.
The ANC prioritises community...
William Ruto wins in Washington – but does Kenya?
Not all Kenyans are enchanted by the prospect of being America’s main partner in sub-Saharan Africa.
Kenyan President William Ruto last week made the first...
ActionSA wants an SANDF that can respond to any threat to South Africa
Herman Mashaba’s ActionSA party claims that it will, if elected, establish a well-equipped, well-resourced, and professional South African National Defence Force (SANDF) that is...
National security, including border security, high priority for PAC
The Pan African Congress of Azania (PAC), under the leadership of Mzwanele Nyhontso, gives voters more information on border and national security in its...
Defence a big focus for UDM
On defence, United Democratic Movement (UDM) leader Bantu Holomisa states in the party manifesto “it is unlikely that we will see conventional war that...
IFP wants to double defence budget – manifesto
The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP), in its elections manifesto, recognises the importance of defence and would like to more than double the defence budget...
Freedom Front Plus wants to restore safety and security and rebuild the defence force
Pieter Groenewald’s Freedom Front Plus (FF+) elections manifesto, under the sub-heading “rebuild the defence force”, starts by noting the effectiveness of a defence force...
Conscription and illegal immigration at the core of Patriotic Alliance defence and security manifesto
Gayton McKenzie’s Patriotic Alliance (PA) takes a tough stance on illegal immigration, the death penalty, and conscription in its party manifesto.
The 14 000 plus...
Comprehensive plan for the SANDF in EFF manifesto
Julius Malema’s Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) elections manifesto runs to a lengthy 260 pages with plans of action for, among others, land; jobs; energy,...
Democratic Alliance elections manifesto focuses on crime rather than defence
The Democratic Alliance (DA), as the official opposition in the just ended sixth administration, has had a lot to say about the state of...
Slim focus on defence and security in ANC’s elections manifesto
The ruling African National Congress (ANC) elections manifesto runs to 58 pages, but there is little mention of defence and security.
The only mentions of...
Minister Modise commits SANDF to disaster assistance
A memorandum of collaboration (MoC) entered into this week will, according to Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (CoGTA) Minister Thembi Nkadimeng, strengthen South Africa’s...
SANDF would have enough money if it wasn’t for theft and corruption
There is much discussion about the declining South African National Defence Force (SANDF) budget, which is unlikely to increase, but the military would have...
US to increase International Military Education & Training (IMET) for Equatorial Guinea
The United States Government plans to provide $500,000 in International Military Education & Training (IMET) to the Government of Equatorial Guinea this fiscal year,...
South Africa’s polls unlikely to result in widespread public violence
South Africa’s 29 May national and provincial elections will be the hardest fought since the birth of the country’s democracy in 1994. Surveys show...
Scammers take aim at SIU
Nothing is sacred when it comes to the bare-faced cheek of South Africa’s scamming community as the respected and results driven Special Investigating Unit...
What the uMkhonto weSize Party sees for South Africa on the defence and security...
After legal victory over the majority African National Congress, one of the newest additions to the South African political environment – the uMkhonto weSizwe...
Ramaphosa tries to patch up relations with Rwanda
Could South African President Cyril Ramaphosa’s efforts to rekindle ties between his country and Rwanda also help resolve the dangerous standoff between Rwanda and...
Mapping a surge of disinformation in Africa
Disinformation campaigns seeking to manipulate African information systems have surged nearly fourfold since 2022, triggering destabilizing and antidemocratic consequences.
The proliferation of disinformation is a...
Niger has cut military ties with the US: why this is bad for the...
Niger – a landlocked country of 25 million people in one of the most unstable parts of the world – recently announced it was...
Mapisa-Nqakula hands herself over to police after resigning as Speaker and Member of Parliament
Former Defence and Military Veterans Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula has handed herself in to the police, a day after announcing her resignation as Speaker of...
Asset Forfeiture Unit secures R43 million preservation order against former DRC defence attaché
The National Prosecuting Authority’s (NPA’s) Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) has secured a R43 million preservation order emanating from a case of fraud and theft...
Mapisa-Nqakula bribery allegations further evidence of SANDF “destruction” – Groenewald
Freedom Front Plus (FF+) leader Pieter Groenewald “hopes” the latest brouhaha in the Department of Defence (DoD)/SA National Defence Force (SANDF) axis will be...
Mapisa-Nqakula takes special leave after bribery claims, raid
Given what she terms “the seriousness of allegations” and “attendant extensive media speculation” National Assembly (NA) speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula has gone on special leave.
The...
Mapisa-Nqakula proclaims nothing to hide after NPA raid
A National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) five-hour plus raid on the home of National Assembly (NA) Speaker, Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula, in the upmarket eastern Johannesburg suburb...
Mapisa-Nqakula in opposition party crosshairs following bribery allegations
The Democratic Alliance (DA) is pushing for former defence minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula to be investigated by Parliament’s ethics committee after she was accused of...