By JOHANNESBURG — The Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) has launched a scathing attack on the Democratic Alliance (DA), accusing the official opposition of “political grandstanding” and exploiting the tragic murder of women in Ekurhuleni for campaign purposes.
The fiery rebuke follows the grim discovery of a ninth woman’s body in Ekurhuleni, a development that has sent shockwaves through local communities and heightened panic over women’s safety. Rather than fostering a united front against gender-based violence (GBV), the crisis has instead triggered a fierce political war of words between the provincial administration and the opposition.
At the centre of the government’s frustration is a controversial R500,000 donation pledged by the DA, which the GPG slammed as an opaque display of “financial muscle” and political opportunism.
Provincial authorities also took strong exception to a DA-led petition, arguing that it deliberately misleads the public by falsely claiming that law enforcement has adopted a passive approach—allegedly telling women merely to protect themselves—instead of actively hunting down the perpetrator.
A Multidisciplinary Security Response
Pushing back against accusations of state inaction, Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s administration defended the ongoing security measures. According to the GPG, the South African Police Service (SAPS)—alongside the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department—has heavily ramped up patrols, boosted police visibility, and deployed a specialized multidisciplinary team featuring expert detectives and forensic investigators.
“The Gauteng Provincial Government therefore rejects the suggestion that the State has simply stood by while women are being killed. We agree that action is needed. We disagree that political campaigning is a substitute for that action,” Premier Lesufi stated.
The province further clarified that public safety warnings issued by SAPS—advising caution in specific high-risk zones where bodies were found—were never intended to shift the blame onto victims, but rather served as immediate tactical safety advisories while manhunts and forensic sweeps are underway.
A Call for Unity Over Point-Scoring
While maintaining that the state bears the ultimate constitutional duty to prevent, investigate, and prosecute crime, the provincial government emphasized that community cooperation remains a vital pillar in cracking the case. Echoing similar sentiments from the Commission for Gender Equality, authorities urged residents to channel credible information directly to investigators.
The GPG concluded with a stern warning to political formations across the spectrum, stressing that the victims and their grieving relatives must not be treated as campaign slogans or political props.
“The Government’s message is clear: we will not allow these killings to become normalised, and we will not allow the grief of families to be exploited for political gain,” the statement declared. “There must be accountability. There must be justice. And there must be action.”
