Two imminent inquiries must clarify whether the minister was motivated by valid concerns or improper political motives.

At his dramatic 6 July media briefing, KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi made several allegations that raise serious questions about the role of corrupt politicians and police in facilitating organised crime in South Africa.

The allegations will soon be the subject of inquiries by the Madlanga Commission and a Parliamentary Ad Hoc Committee. Hopefully, both will uncover considerable details about the alleged crimes highlighted.

Mkhwanazi’s briefing spotlighted a written instruction by then police minister Senzo Mchunu on 31 December 2024, for the Political Killings Task Team to immediately be shut down.

He implied that the directive was intended to obstruct the investigation of criminal networks that enjoy the protection of corrupt politicians and are potentially linked to the murder of whistleblowers. Mkhwanazi appeared to assert that senior police were also complicit in preventing further investigation of these cases.

His allegations raise questions about whether Mchunu acted reasonably and justifiably in ordering the task team’s closure, or had improper motives.

It is widely believed that Mchunu’s instruction constituted unlawful interference in South African Police Service (SAPS) operational matters. However the boundary between operations and policy is not always clear. Indeed Section 207(2) of the country’s constitution authorises the minister to issue ‘directions’ to the SAPS national commissioner, with no explicit limit on what these may provide.

It is also likely that, over the years, ministerial and other political influence has frequently been brought to bear on police operational decision making.

Whether Mchunu’s order to close the task team constituted inappropriate interference is likely to be debated at both inquiries. But the more important question is whether the former minister’s motives were improper. His written instruction sheds little light on the matter, stating simply that the team is ‘no longer required nor is it adding any value to policing in South Africa.’

In many parts of South Africa, political power is exercised corruptly to secure access to state financial resources. However, it is in KwaZulu-Natal that lethal violence is most likely to be mobilised to advance corrupt political interests. Political killings in the province are facilitated by the fact that it is the primary source of izinkabi (hitmen) in South Africa.

The contamination of state institutions by political factional rivalries extends into the police. According to the 2018 report of the Moerane Commission on political murders in KwaZulu-Natal, ‘state institutions, particularly security institutions, are being manipulated by politicians.

For most of the past 17 years, South Africa’s police minister has been from KwaZulu-Natal. No police minister is known to have tried to limit political influence on the police.

The task team may have been contaminated by political influence since its inception. It was established in 2016 under Nathi Nhleko, who was appointed police minister by former president Jacob Zuma in 2014. The Zuma administration engaged in overt manipulation of the criminal justice system.

A second iteration of the task team was launched in July 2018 under the watch of an Inter-Ministerial Committee. But in practice, Bheki Cele, an influential KwaZulu-Natal politician appointed police minister in February 2018, was the committee’s only public representative. He said the task team would incorporate assistance from the National Prosecuting Authority and other state agencies.

Though the task team has a reputation for effectiveness, its impact on political killings is unclear. The Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime reported 15 political killings in KwaZulu-Natal in 2021 and 21 in 2022 – constituting at least 50% of the national total in both years. In 2023, 61% of the country’s 31 political killings happened in KwaZulu-Natal.

Cele provided figures for the task team’s arrests and convictions at various press briefings. To show effectiveness, investigative units tend to pursue cases that are ‘easy wins’, and the task team is likely to have done the same. As a result, the masterminds who recruited the izinkabi may have received less investigative attention.

A further question is whether the task team selected cases based on political considerations or other irregular motives.

If Mchunu had reasonable justification for his instruction, this may have originated in his own knowledge of the interface between policing and politics in the province. It may also have been influenced by an October 2024 submission from KwaZulu-Natal academic and violence monitor, Mary de Haas.

She appealed to Mchunu to disband the task team, referring to allegations of political manipulation, malicious arrest and prosecution of law enforcement officials refusing to participate in improper investigations.

Before taking the top policing job in KwaZulu-Natal in 2021, Mkhwanazi served as acting provincial commissioner from May 2018 to July 2019. He is unique among senior SAPS leaders for having openly resisted political interference.

In 2012, as acting SAPS national commissioner, he resisted political pressure from then police minister Nathi Mthethwa to withdraw the suspension of Richard Mdluli and reinstate him as head of crime intelligence. Mdluli was suspected of serious criminal offences, and has subsequently been convicted for some of them.

But since becoming KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Commissioner, it is unclear whether Mkhwanazi has taken steps to ensure the task team’s impartiality and integrity. The relationship between Mchunu and Mkhwanazi appears to have been marked by acrimony and distrust; it is unclear why.

Police Minister Firoz Cachalia and SAPS National Commissioner Fannie Masemola said last week that the investigation of political killings and other assassinations, including those of whistleblowers, was important for addressing corruption and organised crime. Hopefully, improved investigation of such killings will be among the outcomes of the two forthcoming inquiries.

In assessing Mchunu’s instruction to shut down the task team, both inquiries will need to examine whether it effectively investigated political killings or used its powers selectively and inappropriately. 

Written by David Bruce, Independent Researcher and ISS Consultant