MADLANGA COMMISSION: Where criminals rule the roost — Correctional Services boss outlines SA prisons’ parlous state

National Correctional Services Commissioner Makgothi Thobakgale testified before the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry that South Africa's prisons have become battlegrounds for organised crime, with gang leaders directing street-level operations from within the facilities. He detailed how criminal networks infiltrate the system, maintain communication with outside entities, and exploit the prison environment for illicit activities.

Thobakgale outlined the prevalence of cellphones in prisons, which are used to coordinate criminal operations, distribute drugs, intimidate witnesses and officials, and facilitate fraud against the public. Confiscations of cellphones surged from 30,215 in the 2023-2024 financial year to 39,242 in the 2025-2026 financial year, attributing the increase to intensified searches and a growing inmate population.

The prisons system remains strained by overcrowding, with a 3% increase in the inmate population between April and June. Thobakgale stated that maintaining one inmate costs around R480 per day, and the 3% rise in prisoners resulted in a R700-million additional expense, prompting his department to alert Cabinet ministers.

Gang activity both inside and outside the prisons continues to pose significant security risks. Thobakgale explained that offenders affiliated with various gangs, such as the Americans, Hard Livings, Clever Kids, Naughty Boys, and Numbers, forge relationships with prison-based gangs upon entering correctional centres. This creates a continuance of criminal command and communication between offenders inside the facilities and gang leadership operating externally, effectively using the prisons to sustain gangs.