Can of worms: KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi
sounded the alarm about police corruption. Photo: Delwyn Verasamy
The inquiries into the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the criminal justice system have shone a light on a secretive and violent government department and exposed how senior officials facilitated corruption.
While implementing the recommendations of the inquiries often fell short of expectations, the Madlanga commission and parliament’s ad hoc committee investigating KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi’s July claims about corruption in policing had opened a crucial public conversation on the rot, analysts said.
Policing was “not in a good place”, said Otlotleng Mokgathle, a senior analyst at security advisory firm Control Risk. He said the inquiries showed the extent criminal networks had infiltrated the justice system.
Mokgathle wanted President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State Of The Nation address (Sona), delivered on Thursday, to acknowledge a sour point in the confidence drop in law enforcement, noting that previous speeches had a trend of making promises and highlighting small achievements.
In his speech Ramaphosa announced the deployment of the South African National Defence Force to combat illegal mining and gang violence in Gauteng and the Western Cape provinces.
Ramaphosa reaffirmed his commitment to the special task team mandated to pursue further investigations and prosecution of implicated police officials at the Madlanga Commission.
“Organised crime is now the most immediate threat to our democracy, our society and our economic development. Our primary focus this year is on stepping up the fight against organised crime and criminal syndicates, using technology, intelligence and integrated law enforcement,” said Ramaphosa.
Mokgathle said community violence, missing case dockets, extrajudicial killings and illegal mining characterised the sector. Mokgathle commended the “structural record” of the inner workings of the criminal justice system created by the two inquiries.
“If the commissions can be converted to legislative amendments and budget allocations, it might force the executive to implement the recommendations,” he said, adding that even though there had not been clarity on some witness testimony, the reports would push policy reform and oversight bodies to act.
Organised crime investigator Chad Thomas applauded Ramaphosa’s decision to establish a task team to implement the recommendations from the Madlanga commission’s interim report.
The task team, led by national police commissioner Fannie Masemola and acting police minister Firoz Cachalia, has been mandated to conduct further investigations and the prosecution of implicated senior police officials.
The list includes high-profile officials such as SAPS organised crime unit head Richard Shibiri, KwaZulu-Natal head of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (the Hawks) Lesetja Senona and Sedibeng district commissioner Mbangwa Nkhwashu, Brigadier Rachel Matjeng and Sergeant Fannie Nkosi.
Several Ekurhuleni metropolitan police department officials have also been included for their role in an illegal memorandum of understanding with a private security company, CAT VIP Protection, owned by businessman and alleged leader of the Big Five cartel Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala.
“The executive has shown decisive action,” said Thomas. He said reforms at the Independent Police Investigative Directorate, the police watchdog, were signs of implementation. The task team would ensure that the outcomes from the inquiries were not only evidential, he said.
Crime Intelligence head Dumisani Khumalo has alleged that close to 80% of the Gauteng police service has been implicated in organised crime. Thomas said he doubted that most of the country’s police were corrupt, pointing out that the witness testimony at the inquiries showed some were not.
Weaknesses in oversight, coordination and accountability enforcement had consistently emerged at the hearings, independent governance and regulatory analyst Rose Motshwaedi said.
“There are recurring issues around intelligence governance, procurement processes, chain of command clarity and the speed at which misconduct is addressed,” she told the Mail & Guardian.
Motshwaedi described policing challenges as structural issues rather than isolated incidents.
“Where procedures are followed strictly, outcomes are stronger. Where oversight gaps exist, credibility suffers. The picture is one of institutional stress and reform urgency, not total dysfunction,” she said.
For the inquiries to produce stronger outcomes, the government had to move quickly from documentation to action. “That means clear referrals to prosecutorial bodies, defined timelines for implementation and public reporting on progress. One of the major lessons from past commissions is that recommendations lose momentum if there is no structured follow-through mechanism,” Motshwaedi said.
Long-team impacts would be measurable if the Madlanga commission’s findings were supported by legislative reform, strengthened oversight structures and consistent monitoring, she said. “Ultimately, the success of the commission will not be judged by the volume of testimony but by whether institutional reforms are embedded.”
Asked to rate Cachalia’s performance, Motshwaedi said the reform process had yet to show results and many of the structural changes predated his tenure.
Ramaphosa appointed Cachalia last year, after suspending Police Minister Senzo Mchunu, who was implicated in political interference by Mkwanazi during his July media briefing. Crime Intelligence head Khumalo and Masemola corroborated Mkhwanazi’s claims and accused Mchunu of disbanding a task team investigating political killings, without consultation and at the behest of crime syndicates.
Mchunu has denied the allegations. He said he consulted advisers and admitted that he had not consulted Ramaphosa who had established the political killings task team.
Mchunu told the Madlanga commission and parliament’s ad hoc committee that he was implementing a study which recommended the disbandment. His intentions were to centralise crime fighting within the SAPS violent crime unit.
After his appointment, Cachalia returned 121 case dockets which had been removed from the task team and publicly supported the work of the inquiries.
A meaningful assessment of Cachalia’s performance should focus on measurable indicators such as implementation of the commission’s interim recommendations, stabilisation of intelligence governance, transparency in procurement and progress in crime reduction trends, Motshwaedi said.
“Police reform is institutional, not personal. Sustainable change depends on systems being strengthened beyond the leadership of any single individual,” she said.
Thomas said Cachalia had proved to be more than a “caretaker” minister, applauding him for surrounding himself with proper advisors.
“He has dedicated his time to understanding the problem,” Thomas said. However, Cachalia’s intention to disband SAPS crime intelligence and a controversial Secret Service account used as a slush fund would not fix the challenges in the criminal justice system.
During his testimony at the ad hoc committee, forensic investigator Paul O’Sullivan called the slush fund “the root of evil in the police”. He described internal fights in the SAPS as the battle to gain control of the account.
Thomas noted that the account had been allegedly used by officials to buy personal property and vehicles and there had been no accountability by crime intelligence on how the funds were used. Cachalia should push the police ministry beyond disbanding units towards rebuilding institutional capacity, he added.
“We cannot dismantle crime intelligence. What we need to do is clean up corruption and replicate successes. We would be doing ourselves a disservice if crime intelligence is disbanded,” said Thomas.
Mokgathle said Cachalia had shown his support for the inquiries and had the political backing to implement reforms. He stressed the public thirst for “measurable outcomes” and that the acting police minister should focus on strengthening oversight of officials in the SAPS and crime intelligence.
“I don’t think he can be defended nor can he be dismissed as reforms are at an early stage,” he added.
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