March and March leader questions R600 million protest policing budget
March and March leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma criticises government’s R600m policing plan ahead of planned June 30 protests.
Black News 
The leader of the March and March movement, Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma, has criticised government’s decision to spend R600 million on policing ahead of planned June 30 protests.
Her comments came after Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia confirmed the security allocation during a media briefing in Pretoria on Monday.
Cachalia said the South African Police Service (SAPS) had finalised deployment plans across all nine provinces and stood ready to maintain law and order.
He said SAPS remains the lead law enforcement agency responsible for maintaining public order and protecting infrastructure and residents.
March and March leader Ngobese-Zuma questions spending priorities
In an interview with SABC News, Ngobese-Zuma said the funding decision shows police already have the money and capacity to deal with illegal immigration and other crimes.
“I mean, if they’ve got so much money to spend on fighting March and March, surely they’ve got enough to fight illegal immigration themselves. They need to do their job and do it fully. You can’t decide when you’re doing your job and when you’re not going to do your job,” she said.
She added, “Since we know that they’ve got the capacity to have the police present, then it means that they’ve got enough money to make sure the country is safe, especially the borders. We encourage them to use that money going forward to protect the citizens of the country against people who are in the country illegally.”
Minister defends security operation
Cachalia said SAPS will not tolerate violence or disruptions during the planned protests.
“Peacefully and within the confines of the law, however, criminality, intimidation, incitement to violence, the destruction of property. Any attempt to undermine public safety will not be tolerated,” Cachalia said.
He added, “The rule of law will indeed prevail.”
Cachalia also confirmed that the operation will cost more than R600 million.
“I can tell you it is going to cost police over R600 million. That is what it costs when there are efforts to destabilise the country,” he said.
