Fury over Premier’s secrecy on ‘cop infiltration’ by WC gangs

WHEN Kwa-Zulu Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkwahanazi lifted the lid on the alleged infiltration of police by criminal syndicates, Premier Alan Winde had yet to unseal a report into an investigation about the links between gangs and police from the public.

The report, already three years old, was handed to Winde by the Western Cape Police Ombudsman in 2022.

The DA-led government initiated the investigation after a scathing judgment by Western Cape High Court judge Daniel Thulare.

Part of that judgment involving members of the notorious criminal gangs read: “The evidence suggests not only a capture of some lower-ranking officers in the SAPS. The evidence suggests that the senior management of the SAPS in the province has been penetrated to the extent that the 28 gang has access to the table where the Provincial Commissioner of the SAPS in the Western Cape sits with his senior managers and lead them in the study of crime, develop crime prevention strategies and decide on tactics and approach to the safety and security of inhabitants of the Western cape. This includes penetration of and access to the sanctity of the reports by specialised units like the Anti-Gang Unit and Crime Intelligence, to the Provincial Commissioner.”

Lambasting then Police Minister Bheki Cele’s inaction at the time, Winde moved to launch an investigation to answer one key question, he said: “Is there sufficient evidence and concern to warrant establishing a Commission of Inquiry to probe serious allegations of links between gangs and members of the South African Police Service (SAPS) in the province – among them senior officials?”

Upon receiving the report, Winde said he would not make it public despite calls from activists who also suggested that the Premier redact names if necessary.

In his recent appearance before the Parliamentary ad hoc committee, Cele indicated that Judge Thulare, not Mkhwanazi first raised the issue of criminal gangs infiltrating the SAPS.

Asked about why the report had still not been made public, Winde's office said it would not be able to answer. Other unanswered questions were about who the office of the Premier was protecting by not making the report public, since taxpayers’ money was involved.

At the time the report was classified, anti-crime activist, now Police Portfolio Committee chairperson and DA MP Ian Cameron, had said: “It’s incredibly important because it’s that transparency that is lacking at the moment. If we are not going to have transparency it will mean more senior officials that are complicit will get away with it and that’s the problem. There are too many people involved that are in positions of power and therefore the silence...If the exposure doesn't happen, it means that the government and especially SAPS management has blood on their hands."

Questions to him on whether he still holds the same view were unanswered.

Anti-crime activists still believe the report may help address the persistently high crime levels in the province.

The Social Justice Coalition’s Bonga Zamisa said: “The continued delay in releasing such reports mirrors the same lack of transparency and accountability that communities, especially in Khayelitsha, Manenberg and other communities experience daily while engaging with the South African Police Service. This kind of withholding of critical information reflects the broader pattern of institutional inaction, much like the unimplemented recommendations of the Khayelitsha Commission of Inquiry, led by Justice Kate O’Regan and Adv. Vusi Pikoli, which have remained largely ignored since 2014.

“For communities facing daily violence, lack of safety, and poor policing, such delays erode public trust and deny people the justice and transparency they deserve. The SJC calls for the immediate release of the report and for the government to demonstrate genuine commitment to accountability and implementation of past and current findings aimed at improving policing and community safety.”

The Gangsterism Must Fall movement said: “It is unacceptable that nearly three years after the Western Cape Police Ombudsman’s report allegedly exposed gang infiltration of the SAPS, including access to senior management and crime strategies, it has still not been made public. This delay undermines accountability and leaves communities exposed to gang violence. Citizens have a right to know the truth and to live in a province where law enforcement can be trusted.”

Leader of the Opposition in the provincial legislature, Khalid Sayed said Winde had a “pattern of withholding critical reports from both the Legislature and the people of this province”.

The National Coloured Congress (NCC) said it would raise the issue in the provincial legislature.

“We are not surprised but remain concerned that issues that affect our daily living should remain classified. If true, the perpetrators must be prosecuted with the full force of the law, and maximum jail time must be the minimum sentence. However, we ask that those who conceal these crimes be prosecuted as accomplices in this ungodly act and demand that this report be made public,” the party said.

Cape Times