CALLS FOR MCHUNU PROBE INTENSIFY AFTER EXPLOSIVE ALLEGATIONS

The African Transformation Movement (ATM) has formally requested the Public Protector to investigate the claims, while other political figures and academics have urged President Cyril Ramaphosa to take decisive action.

The controversy stems from a media briefing on Sunday, where Mkhwanazi accused Mchunu of orchestrating the collapse of the highly successful KZN political killings task team. Mkhwanazi alleged that the minister, along with an associate named Brown Mogotsi, interfered in police operations to protect a murder-accused businessman, Vusimuzi ‘Cat’ Matlala.

Matlala was reportedly awarded a R360 million police contract, which was later cancelled due to irregularities. The ATM has urged the Public Protector to prioritise a probe into Mchunu, describing the allegations as a matter of “national security.”

Mchunu has vehemently denied the claims, dismissing them as “baseless” and “wild allegations.” In a statement, the minister asserted that he would “never allow his integrity, that of the Ministry or the SAPS at large to be undermined by insinuations made without evidence or due processes.”

He has indicated that he will review the commissioner’s statements and consider appropriate action, stating the matter requires a “thorough and transparent investigation, on a proper platform.”

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A Web of Intrigue

At the heart of the scandal is the disbandment of the political killings task team, which Mkhwanazi claims was deliberately sabotaged. This unit was reportedly investigating Matlala in connection with the attempted murder of the sister of slain Gauteng whistleblower Babita Deokaran. According to Mkhwanazi, the unit’s work had begun to uncover a wider crime syndicate involving politicians and senior police officials.

Mkhwanazi presented WhatsApp messages, allegedly from Matlala’s phone, suggesting a quid pro quo. One message from Mogotsi to Matlala reportedly read, “the task team that came to your house and harassed you, have been dissolved.”

The ATM’s letter to the Public Protector, Advocate Kholeka Gcaleka, details a “flagrant abuse of power,” alleging that Mchunu compromised the rule of law for private and political gain. The party claims that since the task team was dismantled, over 120 case dockets, many linked to political assassinations, have been shelved. This has intensified calls for a comprehensive probe.

Renowned criminologist Professor Kholofelo Rakubu has praised Mkhwanazi for his courage and warned that President Ramaphosa must act decisively to protect the integrity of the South African Police Service (SAPS). Rakubu told IOL that if the president fails to act, the “African National Congress is going to suffer dismally.”