In his State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Thursday, 12 February 2026, President Cyril Ramaphosa described organised crime as “the most immediate threat to our democracy.” From drug trafficking syndicates and gang activity to the so-called “Construction Mafia,” the speech made it clear that crime and corruption are now central to government’s national agenda. For Johannesburg, these commitments carry significant implications for how safety and security may evolve.
One of the most debated interventions announced during SONA was the deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to support the South African Police Service (SAPS) to address two important regional priorities. Gang violence remains a major concern in the Western Cape, while illegal mining has become a growing threat in Gauteng. For many residents and businesses, additional visibility and manpower may bring reassurance in the short term, particularly in areas where organised criminal networks have placed increasing pressure on local law enforcement.
However, criticism has centred on the limits of military involvement in civilian policing. SANDF soldiers do not have powers of arrest, nor the mandate to conduct criminal intelligence operations. They are also not trained for routine law enforcement or sustained community engagement. These concerns highlight an important reality: while increased deployment may stabilise certain hotspots temporarily, more boots on the ground alone will not solve deeply rooted safety challenges — particularly in a complex urban environment like Johannesburg, where illegal mining intersects with infrastructure crime, economic vulnerability and organised syndicates.
Encouragingly, the SONA also acknowledged that sustainable progress requires structural reform rather than reactive interventions. Government has embarked on a process to strengthen the effectiveness of the fight against crime and corruption by establishing specialised SAPS units. These units are designed to work in closer partnership with business, private security and state-owned enterprises to tackle complex threats, including illegal mining, drug-related activity, illegal firearms and human trafficking.
For Johannesburg’s business community this collaborative approach should signal a shift toward more coordinated and intelligence-led responses. Safety is increasingly being framed not only as a policing issue, but as a shared responsibility between public and private stakeholders who operate within the same urban ecosystem.
The 2026 commitments also include the recruitment of 5 500 new police officers this year, adding to the 20 000 constables who have been trained and deployed over the last three years. Alongside this, government announced plans to hire 10 000 additional labour inspectors to strengthen immigration and labour enforcement. While these measures may seem administrative on the surface, they address systemic vulnerabilities that organised crime often exploits. Stronger oversight of labour and regulatory systems can contribute to stabilising economic environments and reducing the space in which criminal networks operate.
On the issue of corruption, President Ramaphosa highlighted that lifestyle audits reached 93% compliance among senior public servants last year — a statistic intended to signal improved accountability within the state. He also noted that 56 municipalities had been criminally charged for failing to meet water obligations, with government prepared to hold municipal managers personally accountable. These announcements reinforce the message that governance failures are increasingly being treated as matters of legal consequence rather than political debate.
For Johannesburg, where service delivery challenges and infrastructure decline have led to urban decay that intersects with safety concerns, tackling corruption is more than symbolic. It represents a foundational step toward restoring both physical order and social cohesion.
All of this sends a clear signal: crime and corruption have taken centre stage in the President’s plans for 2026. Yet the path to safer cities will not be defined by government action alone. The evolving security landscape calls for deeper collaboration between public institutions, private security, business leaders and civil society — a shared approach that recognises safety as a collective responsibility.
This is where the F.I.R.M.’s concept of a ‘Collective Brains Trust’ becomes particularly relevant. By bringing together diverse expertise across sectors, private stakeholders can partner more effectively with law enforcement and harness the collective to tackle crime, physical and social disorder, and the urban and community decay that often enables criminal activity to thrive. Through collaboration, intelligence-sharing and coordinated action, we can contribute to creating, maintaining and supporting a safer and more secure South Africa.