He said prisoners live more comfortably than the poor people in squatter camps.
Nkangala ANC chairman Speedy Mashilo has said harsher prison conditions can really help in the battle to fight crime and that’s what branches should consider discussing as the party goes to an elective conference.
Mashilo spoke while they marched against gender-based violence in eMalahlani Tuesday this week, saying the system of giving prisoners free food 4 times a day is wrong and contributes to the high levels of crime.
“Criminals leave their children to go eat 4 times a day and watch DStv, as we go to conference we must look at that comrades and change it,” said Mashilo.
Mashilo said taxpayers cannot be expected to make prisoner’s lives more comfortble than the people outside jail, especially the poor who live in shacks.
“We must change the law so that there is hard labour in prisons. Criminals must produce vegetables and these vegetables be sent to the schools for our children to eat.
“We can’t have a father living nicely in jail while his kid doesn’t have food. He must produce food from prison yards and we send them to schools for the kids,” he said.
He said these harsh conditions as well as strengthening the justice system will assist the country in the battle against crime and “not prayer”.
“Prayer won’t assist us. We need the law,” Mashilo said.
He said pastors themselves are lawbreakers, pastors like Tim Omotoso who “instead of praying for us he committed an offence against young women”.
“So prayer won’t help us,” said Mashilo.
Their march submitted a memorandum against the scourge of women abuse, drugs and human trafficking.
The memorandum was submitted to eMalahlani mayor Linah Malatjie, eMalahlani Magistrates Court manager Thulani Mabena as well the SAPS.
NEC member Mduduzi Manana, former Mpumalanga ANC secretary Lucky Ndinisa, acting secretary Lindiwe Ntshalintshali and former ANCYL Nkangala chair Mduduzi ‘Mswati’ Nkosi led the march which departed from TUT, via Witbank hospital and concluded at the eMalahleni municipal gardens.
It was aimed to say ‘enough is enough’ in the fight against gender based violence.
(edited by MLM)
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