The SANDF is fast turning out to be a magnet for controversy. This is unfortunate and needs to be nipped in the bud.
For much of the past year, the force was in the news for its disastrous deployment in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Fourteen soldiers returned in body bags after a clash with Rwanda-backed M23 rebels.
In July 2021, the army, which had been ordered to help quell the mayhem in parts of KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng, took days before driving to affected areas.
Late in 2025, army chief Gen Rudzani Maphwanya found himself in the crosshairs when he uttered what amounted to political remarks during an official visit to Tehran, Iran. The government distanced itself from his comments but took no further action.
At home, Navy officers attracted negative attention from their political superiors for talking about the poor state of the navy.
Last Friday, defence & military veterans minister Angie Motshekga announced that she had appointed a board of inquiry to investigate disturbing allegations that the army might have defied an order for Iran’s warships to participate only as observers during military exercises alongside South Africa, Russia and China.
According to Motshekga, one of the president’s allies, the order, which came from President Cyril Ramaphosa as commander-in-chief, was appropriately communicated on time to all relevant authorities.
The order was apparently informed by South Africa’s foreign and national security policy goals. The exercises took place at a time of geopolitical tensions, days after the capture of Nicolás Maduro, Venezuela’s president, by the US government to face charges of drug terrorism in the US.
Also, they took place as relations between South Africa and the US continue to deteriorate over false claims that Afrikaners are facing a state-sponsored genocide and land confiscations.
Although long planned, the military exercises coincided with the vote in the US Congress on the renewal of the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa). A US trade law, it grants duty- and quota-free access to thousands of African exports, including South Africa’s minerals, vehicle parts and agricultural products.
South Africa’s continued participation in the programme is not guaranteed.
The presidency, which is working hard at thawing relations with the US and finalising a new US-South Africa bilateral trade deal, might have downgraded Iran’s participation in the exercises to avoid escalating tensions with the US.
Critically, the South African joint military drills come as Iranians continue to protest for freedom in Tehran. Their demonstrations have been met by a clampdown from authorities, provoking a threat of air strikes by the US government.
Ideology and political solidarity will not help improve the country’s national security, nor will they help South Africa resolve problems of unemployment, inequality and poverty.
South African members of parliament, including those from the ANC, have expressed concern at the apparent defiance of the president’s order.
The board of inquiry has seven days to establish the facts and make recommendations. Quite rightly, the army has not publicly commented.
The board must be given time and space to do its work speedily and answer the many questions that have been raised. These questions include whether the Iranians participated against the will of their hosts and who varied the president’s order.
The inquiry should be thorough and inspire confidence that there will be accountability in the end, regardless of the rank of the wrongdoer. The findings, which should ultimately be made public, should give assurances that command and control structures remain in place in South Africa’s last line of defence.
Though it is early days to say what exactly took place, it is vitally important that our foreign policy is aligned with national security, trade and economic policies.
Ideology and political solidarity will not help improve the country’s national security, nor will they help South Africa resolve problems of unemployment, inequality and poverty.
All South African leaders should remember to prioritise the interests of our economy and its people when carrying out their duties.
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