Public Must Use Internal Measures Over Complaints Of Brutality By SANDF – Xaba

The chairperson for Parliament’s joint committee on defence Cyril Xaba on Wednesday said he expected the case of an Alexandra man who was allegedly beaten to death by the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to be thrown out of the Constitutional Court.

Collins Khosa died earlier this month after soldiers and police conducted an inspection around his home. It’s alleged the soldiers beat him in front of his wife and accused him of drinking alcohol in public. He died hours later.

Lawyers for the family want the apex court to weigh in on whose to blame for his death. The lawyers said they approached the Constitutional Court directly because they had several other cases of people who died at the hands of the SANDF officials during the lockdown.

They wanted the actions of the SANDF to be declared unconstitutional. But Xaba said the group failed to exhaust all other options.

“You must first exhaust all the internal remedies that are there by law. It’s only when you’re not satisfied with the outcome that you can go to the courts. So, the matter is receiving attention,” he said.

The SANDF, police, and the Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department submitted a notice to oppose the Constitutional Court application.

The South African Military Ombud and the Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs were also given until Wednesday to file their answering affidavits.

EWN