'WE DEMAND ACTION'

ACC demands government call for a state of emergency after deadly Kaapse weekend claims the lives of 22 people

- BY WENDY DONDOLO

A VIOLENT weekend across Cape Flats communities has left at least 22 people dead and 16 critically injured, prompting the Alliance of Citizens for Change (ACC) to call for a state of emergency and the reinstatement of the death penalty.

The deadly wave of shootings and stabbings struck multiple neighbourhoods between Friday, 24 October and Sunday, 26 October 2025.

The hardest-hit areas include Mitchells Plain, Manenberg, Lavender Hill, Delft, Bonteheuwel, Seawinds, Elsies River, Kraaifontein and Philippi.

ACC president Masizole Mnqasela said communities were "under siege" and accused government of losing control of public safety.

"Gang violence has escalated beyond the capacity of normal policing. The state must act before communities collapse under fear," Mnqasela said.

The violence spiked across the peninsula in a series of unrelated attacks.

In Tafelsig, Mitchells Plain, two people were shot and one killed on Friday night.