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National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola testifies in Parliament.
- National police commissioner General Fannie Masemola came under heavy scrutiny from DA MP Glynnis Breytenbach.
- This was during a sitting of the parliamentary ad hoc committee established to investigate allegations of criminal infiltration into the police service on Friday.
- Breytenbach questioned why Masemola allowed suspended Police Minister Senzo Mchunu to pressurise him with unlawful requests.
Before the explosive press conference by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, the country’s top cop, General Fannie Masemola, did not know who exactly the high rollers of the criminal underworld were.
On Friday, national police commissioner Masemola testified before the parliamentary ad hoc committee established to investigate allegations of criminal infiltration into the police service.
It’s the second day of Masemola’s testimony and MPs had the opportunity to interrogate Masemola.
Much of his evidence on Thursday was centred around suspended Police Minister Senzo Mchunu’s directive to disband the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT).
DA MP Glynnis Breytenbach asked why Masemola allowed Mchunu to pressure him.
“You are the top cop in South Africa, the only real general in the South African Police Service. Why did you not just tell him no? Why did you not tell him that you wouldn’t close the PKTT and that it was doing a good job?” she said.
In response, Masemola said he did his best to tell Mchunu, but the minister insisted that the PKTT should be disbanded.
“He’s the minister of police; he is above me,” a calm Masemola said, adding that he repeatedly wanted to know what the reasons were for the disbandment.
Furious with Masemola, Breytenbach said he should have told Mchunu to “go to hell”.
“Well, I didn’t tell him that. I told him in a nice way, but he did not listen,” Masemola said, adding that he considers Mchunu his “boss”.
Breytenbach was not impressed.
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While Masemola is appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa, Mchunu was his political principal who had oversight over him and his work.
When pressed harder by Breytenbach about why he didn’t respond to Mchunu in a “less nice way”, Masemola sighed, briefly remained silent, and sighed with a “Ja”.
“General, you are way too nice. Nobody can tell you what to do; you have a lot of power. You don’t seem to want to exercise it,” she said.
Breytenbach also questioned him about why he did not inform the Portfolio Committee on Police about Mchunu’s interference.
He responded:
I will do it in future, if I am still there.
Breytenbach expressed concern that Masemola had no idea about the identities of those intimately linked to the underworld.
“Now I know,” Masemola said.
Breytenbach also asked how he could not have known about alleged underworld kingpin Vusimusi “Cat” Matlala.
“This one, we did not know,” Masemola said.
Breytenbach said the whole country knew.
She said:
It seems like you were the only one who didn’t know.
Breytenbach asked why he didn’t discipline deputy national police commissioner Lieutenant General Shadrack Sibiya, who agreed with Mchunu to disband the PKTT.
“I didn’t know what was the objective of all this,” he said.
On Thursday morning, National Intervention Unit officers conducted a search-and-seizure operation at Sibiya’s Centurion home.
Sibiya and his attorney arrived as officers, armed with rifles, secured the premises.
Breytenbach also questioned Masemola about a legal opinion, in light of Mchunu’s directive to disband the PKTT.
Masemola told MPs that he did seek legal advice.
“Some said yes, some said no,” he said.
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Breytenbach asked Masemola if he got a written legal opinion, to which he responded: “No.”
“You didn’t really feel strongly about this,” Breytenbach argued. Masemola said that assertion was incorrect.
Breytenbach asked if Mkhwanazi’s claims in his media briefing were true.
Masemola nodded his head and said “yes”.
Sibiya, Mchunu, Matlala and businessman Brown Mogotsi are at the centre of a political storm that came about after Mkhwanazi’s July press conference in which he charged that the criminal justice system had been captured, and the PKTT was disbanded as a result.
