The expenditure for the employment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to safeguard and protect National Key Points and critical infrastructure was justified. The deployment of the SANDF in support of the SAPS provided the SAPS and other law enforcement agencies with adequate capacity to create conditions in which the protests organised for 20 March 2023 were conducted in a safe and secure environment.
The employment assisted in providing safe and secure conditions for all the people in the country who were not participating in the protests to safely continue with their normal activities.
Soon after the successful completion of the security cluster effort to ensure a safe, secure and peaceful environment before and after 20 March 2023, the SANDF withdrew from that particular deployment and continued with the safeguarding and protection of Eskom power stations in Mpumalanga, Limpopo and Free State under the same Presidential Authority for Operation Prosper.