No plans for state of emergency over migration

ACTING Police Minister Firoz Cachalia said he had no plans to request President Cyril Ramaphosa to declare a state of emergency on illegal migration after a foreign national was earlier this year arrested in possession of military explosives.

- MAYIBONGWE MAQHINA

Cachalia said a state of emergency was a temporary and extraordinary measure, and was not appropriate for addressing challenges that are structural, long-term and multi-faceted.

“Illegal immigration and its associated risks, including involvement in organised criminal activities, require sustained and co-ordinated interventions across multiple sectors of government rather than a short-term emergency response. In this regard, alternative measures are being implemented through a combination of intelligence-led policing, investigative processes and interdepartmental co-ordination,” Cachalia said.

He was responding to parliamentary questions from MK Party MP Thalente Kubheka following the arrest of a 33-year-old foreign national, by the SAPS Anti-Gang Unit, while in possession of military explosives in Malvern East, Ekurhuleni District, in January.