Democratic Alliance (DA) John Steenhuisen said on Tuesday that he has instructed the party’s Shadow Minister of Justice Advocate Glynnis Breytenbach to open charges of incitement to violence against Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, Duduzane Zuma and Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema.

The DA is accusing them of inciting violence on social media, following the recent imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma.

Protests by his supporters turned violent over the weekend, with looting and violence continuing to plague parts of Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal.

Steenhuisen said this is a time when leaders should be doing what they can to calm the situation on the ground and not inflame them.

He blamed factional battles in the ruling African National Congress for the country’s current situation and warned that if political leaders are not on the ground the situation could escalate.  

Steenhuisen was in KwaZulu-Natal to visit communities affected by the violence and looting and has challenged President Cyril Ramaphosa to do the same to get a better understanding of the situation.    

“It has been terrible to see the despair of many communities who feel completely abandoned by the security services and who have been left to fend for themselves,” the DA leader said.

Steenhuisen reported that he had seen factories burned down and dead bodies in the KwaZulu-Natal area of Phoenix, which showed him that the situation was not under control.

“Something needs to be done urgently to bring the situation under control because it is not getting any better. In the entire time that I had been out, I have not come across a single member of the SANDF in any of these communities or any of the sites that we visited. I have not come across many members of the South African Police Service (SAPS). It does seem to be an uncoordinated approach to dealing with the situation on the ground,” he said.

He urged Ramaphosa to deploy more SANDF members to assist the SAPS.

Ramaphosa addressed the nation on Monday night calling for calm and providing assurance that those implicated in crimes will be prosecuted.

“Despite President Ramaphosa’s tough words yesterday evening, it hasn't been met with tougher action on the ground. The looting and intimidation, damage to property and damage to people’s lives and livelihoods continues as if nothing said last night had any impact whatsoever,” Steenhuisen said.

He said he has been told that police are running out of rubber bullets and other supplies and that they are completely understaffed and overstretched.

He stressed that strong action needs to be taken.