The longer police National Commissioner Jackie Selebi stays in office, the stronger will be the impression that ”with the right friends one could get away with murder”, the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) said on Friday.
The Cabinet’s ”support and protection” of Selebi put the interests of the country second to that of an individual’s personal interests, FF+ spokesperson Pieter Groenewald said in a statement.
”It is in the interests of combating crime in South Africa that Selebi vacates his position.
”It is not only about whether Selebi has personally been involved in crime or not; it is about the message sent out to the public and the world as to how South Africa combats crime,” he said.
”When a person is a suspect in a case of murder, but at the same time friends with the commissioner of police, the connection could impede any further investigations.
”The longer Selebi stays in his position, the stronger the impression would become that, with the right friends, one could get away with murder,” Groenewald said.
Further, the decision to have the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) investigate information leaks to the media about the probe into the Brett Kebble murder strengthens the impression that ”certain facts are being hidden”.
”Instead of the NIA being used to investigate the Selebi connections with certain individuals, a witch-hunt is now being undertaken into who leaked information to the media.”
The Cabinet is not acting in the interests of the country, but in the interests and protection of an individual.
The public and members of the police have already lost confidence in Selebi, and are fast losing confidence in the government, Groenewald said. — Sapa