DURBAN, KwaZulu-Natal — An alarming surge in political killings in KwaZulu-Natal is casting a dark shadow over South Africa’s upcoming municipal elections. According to Professor Richard Pithouse, a research fellow at the Global Centre for Advanced Studies, the province remains the epicenter of a deadly trend that is increasingly spilling over into the rest of the country as political factions battle for control of lucrative local government budgets.
Despite the formation of the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT) in 2018—which has led to the arrest of over 400 suspects, including 180 alleged hitmen—the violence persists. Pithouse notes a staggering 100% increase in political assassinations over the last decade. He argues that the criminal justice system is merely processing casualties by arresting the “alienated, damaged young men” who pull the triggers, rather than the powerful masterminds ordering and paying for the hits. He pointed to the Babita Deokaran case as a prime example where the actual decision-makers evaded justice.
Election Timing and Shifting Political Alliances
The violence shows a documented pattern of clustering around voter registration and list compilations, worsening significantly during election years. This was underscored recently by the assassination of Musqua, a long-serving eThekwini councillor, just after the second voter registration weekend.
While political violence in the region historically involved clashes between the IFP, NFP, and ANC, Pithouse emphasizes that it is now overwhelmingly an intra-party issue, primarily within the ANC. Though isolated incidents occur elsewhere—such as the assassination of an EFF councillor in Pretoria—Pithouse warns that “unlike Vegas, what happens in Durban doesn’t stay in Durban.” The crisis is no longer just a provincial problem; it is spreading nationwide.
The political landscape is shifting rapidly ahead of the November 4 elections. With opinion polls suggesting the ANC will suffer heavy losses in the province, the MK Party (MKP) is projected to become the dominant political force. Pithouse warns that this transition could exacerbate the violence, noting that many former ANC members joining the MKP bring a deeply entrenched political culture with them. He described the MKP’s political posture as “much more militarized” and less invested in democratic principles than the ANC, predicting a general increase in political violence.
The Financial Motive: Local vs. National Government
Data reveals that municipal elections generate significantly more assassinations than national contests, with 105 local cases recorded since 2000 compared to 81 national ones. Pithouse explains that the motive is rooted in access to money and power rather than ideology.
“It’s actually quite simple,” Pithouse explained. “If you’re an MP going to parliament in Cape Town, you are sitting there passing laws… You’re not controlling those local budgets in the municipalities. Some of these municipalities like in Durban have huge amounts of money. And if you’re a local councilor on that municipality, you can have a direct influence on how that money is spent.”
The ease of carrying out these hits is facilitated by a pre-existing infrastructure tied to the province’s taxi industry and firearms economy, where contract killing has become a recognized profession. However, Pithouse warns that the normalization of violence is expanding beyond political rivals. Recent months have seen armed mobs engaging in xenophobic attacks, expropriating businesses, and driving people from their homes, often while police watch or even participate. Grassroots activists, auditors, and lawyers have already been targeted, and Pithouse cautions that journalists could be next.
Systemic Solutions and a Militarized Culture
Comparing South Africa’s current climate to politically volatile nations in Central America and Mexico, Pithouse insists the country can no longer treat the issue as trivial. To combat the crisis, he advocates for independent, ring-fenced, and specialized police units insulated from local power brokers and economic networks. Furthermore, he calls for a professionalized civil service, stricter financial oversight to curb corruption, and a fundamental shift away from the “masculinist, militarized” political culture that has lingered since the anti-apartheid armed struggle.
While acknowledging the PKTT’s efforts, Pithouse highlighted glaring failures in the system, such as the unsolved assassination of a young activist. In that case, police reportedly ignored provided video evidence of the killers despite repeated reports.
With just 87 days remaining until the local government elections, the focus now turns to whether increased resources for the PKTT can successfully dismantle the networks ordering these hits, target the powerful individuals profiting from tender corruption, and ensure a safer democratic process for all South Africans.
