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Stuff from Johannesburg

SAPS Must Account to Parliament for Ekurhuleni Bloodshed

Statement by Khathutshelo Rasilingwane MPL – DA Ekurhuleni Mayoral Candidate:

Following the killing of two people and the injury of three others in an alleged drive-by shooting in Katlehong, the Democratic Alliance (DA) is calling for the Acting Minister of Police and SAPS top leadership to urgently appear before Parliament and account for their failure to clamp down on the wave of violent crime gripping Ekurhuleni.

We extend our condolences to the families of those killed and wish the injured a full recovery.

On behalf of the residents of Ekurhuleni, I will be writing to the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Police in Parliament, Ian Cameron, calling for urgent intervention.

  1. Investigations that lead to convictions: Deploy experienced detectives, Crime Intelligence and forensic specialists. Prioritise ballistic links between shootings and prosecution-guided investigations. Arrests alone are not success.
  2. Immediate intelligence-led intervention: SAPS must implement a targeted 30-day operation in Ekurhuleni’s worst crime hotspots, with dedicated personnel, vehicles and specialised units. No more roadblocks and arrest statistics presented as progress.
  3. Hold the President to his deadlines: Demand measurable progress on the murders of women, outstanding forensic evidence and the President’s promised investigative interventions. SAPS must report on cases solved, prosecutions and criminal networks dismantled.

This latest shooting adds to a growing trail of blood across our city, including the horrifying discovery of the bodies of women in Ekurhuleni over recent months.

Ekurhuleni needs better policing, better capacity, and intelligence-led policing, not policing that only responds after people have been murdered. Crime Intelligence must identify the networks, trace illegal firearms, follow the money and dismantle the syndicates behind organised violence.

President Cyril Ramaphosa recently addressed the country on the violence in Ekurhuleni, but residents were given little more than another list of intentions, audits and future interventions.

People cannot protect their families with promises.

Ekurhuleni cannot become a killing field while the national government responds with speeches. We need arrests, intelligence and accountability.

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The Carlton Centre: Famous Visitors

At the peak of its prestige in the 1970s and 80s, the precinct was the ultimate address for high finance and luxury. It included the Carlton Hotel, a 30-story five-star icon that hosted everyone from Mick Jagger and Henry Kissinger to Margaret Thatcher. However, as the political landscape shifted in the 1990s and the “capital flight” to the northern suburbs began, the Carlton Centre became a victim of its own geography. The luxury hotel was “mothballed” in 1998 and remains a haunting, empty shell today, with its grand ballroom and 600 rooms frozen in time—a stark contrast to the bustling, gritty energy of the streets below.