Please find attached soundbite in English by Freddy Sonakile MPL.
- DA welcomes the swift rearrest of Rooigrond escapee Edward Kgomotso Madiba and thanks all those involved in bringing him back into custody.
- Madiba’s rearrest does not answer how a repeat escapee managed to break out of a maximum-security facility in the first place.
- DA will proceed with its planned oversight visit to Rooigrond to investigate whether wider infrastructure, security and management failures contributed to the escape.
The Democratic Alliance welcomes the swift rearrest of Rooigrond escapee Edward Kgomotso Madiba and thanks the National Tracing Team, law-enforcement agencies and everyone who assisted in ensuring his return to custody.
Our immediate concern was always that Madiba be apprehended before anyone was harmed.
However, his rearrest does not close the matter.
We will await the outcome of the Department’s investigation into how a repeat escapee managed to escape from a maximum-security correctional facility in the first place.
We will proceed with our planned oversight visit to Rooigrond, because this incident potentially highlights challenges that extend beyond individual personnel to infrastructure, security systems, management and the overall fitness of the facility.
This is particularly important in light of recent findings by the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC), which raised concerns about the condition and functionality of correctional facilities in the North West.
The public deserves more than the reassurance that an escaped offender has been rearrested. They deserve answers about how the escape happened, who was responsible, whether there were systemic failures, and what is being done to ensure it cannot happen again.
We will use our oversight role to establish the facts and ensure that any failures identified are properly addressed.
Madiba is back in custody. Now the questions about Rooigrond must be answered.