DURBAN - The Public Service Commission (PSC) said while it noted the devastating impact of the lockdown on lives and livelihoods and recent civil unrest, some crises continued to beset the country.
The crises, which the report labelled trigger points, included drought, taxi violence, increasing incidents of armed intimidation in the form of the construction mafia or “business forums”, and an influx of illegal foreign nationals.
“If not managed carefully, these could be the next trigger points for violence, community vigilantism and unrest as people become more desperate. The inability to decisively address some of these challenges has fundamentally increased perceived disenfranchisement, disillusionment and the trust deficit between the citizenry and the state,” said the report.
The commission further noted that Covid-19 and the recent violent looting and unrest underscore the need to urgently address the underlying deep structural challenges of inequality, poverty, food insecurity and youth unemployment.
“The convergence of the ’Virus and Violence’ has laid bare the urgent need to decisively address South African problems of corruption, poverty, unemployment and inequality,” the report continued.
It said if government was able to solve such challenges, poor and economically marginalised people would not be manipulated into engaging in criminal and violent activities.
THE MERCURY