'It's like a group of people that has hijacked this country': Mike Bolhuis on organised crime

Seasoned specialist investigator Mike Bolhuis has praised the courage displayed by KwaZulu-Natal provincial police commissioner, Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi who singled out Police Minister Senzo Mchunu, deputy national police commissioner, Lieutenant General Shadrack Sibiya in the rot crippling policing in South Africa.

“Crime can only flourish when there is police involvement. Over the years, It has been proven that crime pays, and that is why everyone gets onto the bandwagon. If you look away and don’t do anything about it (crime), which I understand those in the police do not do anything about because they could be killed, they could not be promoted and they could be dealt with severely and in other ways.

“We see this now coming to this, a level where any unit that is just in the slightest is a threat to those who are committing the organised crime, it is like a mafioso setup. It is like a group of people that has hijacked this country … taken power and control," Bolhuis spoke to SABC News.

“Anybody that is in their way could be dealt with, either by being killed or in connection with Mkhwanazi now, if they cannot find anything on him, if he is not beyond reproach, they are going to badmouth him, put him out there and that will become the narrative. They are unfortunately so strong, so well-oiled this machine, that it is going to be very difficult. The nation has to rise up, the public needs to study that (Mkhwanazi) video carefully,” he said.

Bolhuis said all the sections of South African society earnestly fighting crime need to stand together and push back.

On Monday, IOL reported that renowned criminologist, Prof Kholofelo Rakubu who is the head of Department at Tshwane University of Technology’s merged Department of Law, Safety and Security Management, has saluted Mkhwanazi after he made damning allegations against Mchunu, and Sibiya.

In an interview with IOL, Rakubu said Mkhwanazi has shown an unprecedented degree of courage in taking South Africans into his confidence over the shenanigans bedeviling SAPS, affecting service delivery at the grassroots level.

“President Cyril Ramaphosa will be coming back (from the BRICS Summit in Brazil), he should make sure that he protects South Africans, and he cuts all these lines. Should he not, the African National Congress is going to suffer dismally. It is going to suffer tremendously. Their backs are against the wall now,” said the academic.

“What Mkhwanazi has done is commendable. Should the chain of command and the chain of communication be broken to this extent, by political infiltration, one has no option but to use platforms like what Mkhwanazi did.”

She said after Mkhwanazi’s press briefing, which stirred the hornet’s nest, South Africans should expect much more propaganda targeted at the KwaZulu-Natal provincial police boss.

“As an example, an issue is being made about the uniform he was wearing. He has previously worn that uniform before, tackling crime. There were no questions raised at that time. Now what is happening now is just politicking. We can expect more propaganda against Mkhwanazi because that is how the crux of politics in South Africa operates. There are going to be scandals and scandals to shake South Africans. We should anticipate that at this stage,” said Rakubu.

She added that the ructions at the top echelons of the SAPS affect service delivery in the whole chain of policing, up to the police station in a community. She pointed out that morale is remarkably low among police officers, and the recent revelations might further dampen the mood.

“I am sure there are certain officers who do not even bother with arrests, chasing criminals or doing investigations because they understand all these dynamics and political infiltration within SAPS, and the magnitude of corruption. They will not even waste their resources,” said Rakubu.

IOL News