CR will handle allegations against Mchunu, says Mbalula

THE ANC has described the situation involving Police Minister Senzo Mchunu and KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi as volatile. 

This comes after the top implicated Mchunu in a criminal syndicate. 

Speaking in response to the public fallout triggered by Mkhwanazi’s bombshell press briefing on Sunday, ANC secretary-general, Fikile Mbalula, said the party would defer to President Cyril Ramaphosa to handle the matter “responsibly and without delay,” warning that the issues raised border on state security and require calm, not chaos.

“We have got a Head of State, we have got a President—he must attend to these matters,” Mbalula said.

“As the ANC, we defer to the President to address the issues Mkhwanazi has raised. These are serious matters, and they must be handled carefully and decisively.”

Mkhwanazi has claimed that Mchunu and Deputy National Police Commissioner Shadrack Sibiya attempted to interfere in operational policing matters, raising national debate and concerns regarding potential political interference within the South African Police Service.

Mkhwanazi said Sibiya was acting on the instructions of the Minister of Police to disband the police's political killings task team.

Both Mchunu and Sibiya have denied the allegations.

Mchunu said he would not allow his integrity, that of the Ministry or the SAPS at large, to be “undermined without evidence or due process,” from anyone, including Mkhwanazi. He added that he would review the statements and consider appropriate action. 

Sibiya said Mkhwanazi must stop behaving like a criminal and behave like a disciplined member of the police. “Tell him to stop threatening people and talking about violence there. He must stop behaving like a warlord. He’s a member of the police,” Sibiya told the SABC.

Mbalula emphasised the need for leadership and calm, noting that the ANC would reserve detailed comment until further clarity emerges.

“We will put our comments in detail on these matters for a while in reserve, up until we get to the bottom of the issues that he raised. But those issues are important and must be attended to,” he said.

He also expressed surprise at the public nature of the allegations, describing the situation as “volatile” and urging against politicising the issue.

“We were all under the impression that [Mkhwanazi and the Minister] were working very well together—then boom, the press conference. We were not forewarned about these challenges. He raised very big issues,’ Mbalula said.

The ANC, he said, rejected any notion that it would shield wrongdoing. “I wish to make it very clear: the ANC will not be in favour of fudging the truth in this particular instance,” he said. 

“All these matters must be attended to, and we are confident that the government, under the stewardship of the President, will handle them—and handle them responsibly.”

“We can argue every aspect of what Mkhwanazi has raised, but that’s not the way to address a volatile situation like this. The President must lead.”

Cape Times