- DA leader John Steenhuisen said the violent demonstrations in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng had been damaging to the whole of SA.
- Steenhuisen said the state failed to anticipate and swiftly quell the violence that left businesses and communities in ruin.
- He also believes there is a risk that similar violent outbreaks could reoccur.
DA leader John Steenhuisen has described the mass destruction and looting in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng as a "hinge of history" moment.
In a statement, Steenhuisen said the mayhem last week had damaged communities, the state and the nation's economy, saying:
"History turns on moments such as these. This coordinated looting spree has the potential to greatly accelerate South Africa's descent to a failed state. It has dealt a body blow to confidence in our state and our economy," Steenhuisen said.
The carnage that started in early July claimed the lives of more than 200 people.
Police arrested more than 3 400 people in the unrest in which 200 malls and many other businesses were looted and damaged.
Steenhuisen said the state failed to anticipate and act swiftly to quell the violence.
He also said a heightened risk of recurrence remained.
"This will scare away more skills and investment, and our tiny tax base will shrink still further, with terrible consequences for our ability to provide social services and relief to those millions of vulnerable households who need these now more than ever. But there is also the real possibility that this devastation will convince people of the changes we need to make if we are to build our society into one which really does deliver a better life for all," he said.
The president called for the country to unite to clean up the mess. The first step to cleaning up the mess must surely be to fire these two cabinet ministers who have so utterly failed in their duty to protect South African lives, property and livelihoods.
— John Steenhuisen MP (@jsteenhuisen) July 16, 2021
Steenhuisen also said sometimes hard evidence succeeded "where reasoning fails".
"The rule of law is a precondition for safety, stability and order and therefore an indispensable characteristic of a functional society. Where people feel emboldened to rebel against the rule of law, as they did in KZN and Gauteng last week, well-being, investment and productivity give way to suffering, anarchy and destruction," he said.
Steenhuisen believed it was no coincidence that the state intelligence and police services failed to protect people and property.
"And no one will be surprised if the state fails to arrest, charge and imprison the perpetrators for their actions. The institutions of our state have been severely weakened by years of cadre deployment, the ANC's policy of basing public service appointments on political loyalty," he said.
Steenhuisen believed South Africans needed to "come together" and forge a reform agenda.