In 2023, Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, in full superhero pose, launched the “amaPanyaza” crime-busting squad. The rather narcissistically-named crime wardens consisted of 8000 unemployed youngsters suddenly turned orange-vested “peace officers”.
Crime? Poof! Unemployment? Double-poof. It looked good on paper, but the amaPanyaza never really delivered. The wardens lacked proper training, legal authority, and clear oversight. In the end, it felt more like a PR stunt than a real solution to Gauteng’s crime problem.
Last week, Public Protector Kholeka Gcaleka declared it unlawful and unconstitutional. Seeing the writing on the wall, Lesufi disbanded the squad hours before the release of her report.
Gcaleka ruled that the initiative violated two areas covered by the Constitution: preventing provinces from policing and preventing power grabs. Without gazetted peace officer status under the Criminal Procedure Act, wardens risked civil suits for unlawful arrests. Basically, because they weren’t officially recognised as police, the wardens could’ve been sued for making illegal arrests. In addition, their training via SANDF breached the army’s defence-only mandate.
There were other concerns. The cost breakdown for maintaining the “amaPanyaza” was brutal, with estimates totalling “way above R1.5-billion,” according to DA Gauteng leader Solly Msimanga. This included salaries, uniforms, vehicles, and looming lawsuits. The DA has since tabled a no-confidence motion demanding Lesufi’s removal, calling the initiative “reckless”.
Daily Maverick‘s Stephen Grootes noted this saga underscores populism’s allure amid Gauteng’s crime crisis, where millions live in fear.
This isn’t just about one failed stunt. Across the political spectrum, populist stunts are on the rise.
🔹 Herman Mashaba’s ActionSA just tapped a literal vigilante, Xolani Khumalo, as its Ekurhuleni mayoral candidate. (In April, murder charges against Khumalo were withdrawn, following an incident where he allegedly tortured and killed an alleged drug dealer.)
🔹The overtly populist Patriotic Alliance saw a narrow win in a Soweto by-election recently, showing small parties can punch above their weight in low-turnout areas.
🔹uMkhonto weSizwe has pushed ethnic mobilisation and constitutional abolition.
As Grootes puts it, “The temptations of populism are rising, and it is clear that many politicians will be more likely to succumb in the next few years.”
As the 2026 local government elections loom, let’s remember that declining voter turnout amplifies fringe voices. We need to vote, and encourage others around us to do the same, so that we don’t keep rewarding loud demagogues over steady hands.
