KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.
Parliament’s justice and police committees have recommended the formation of an ad hoc committee to consider allegations made by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, including against suspended Police Minister Senzo Mchunu.
During a joint sitting on Wednesday, committee members agreed that this was the most appropriate mechanism to consider Mkhwanazi’s allegations that Mchunu pressured him to disband a unit investigating organised crime in KwaZulu-Natal.
ActionSA MP Athol Trollip said parliament must avoid duplicating efforts already under way through other oversight structures, while Rise Mzansi legislator Makashule Gana emphasised the urgency of the matter.
“This work must be wrapped up before the end of the year,” he said.
National Assembly speaker Thoko Didiza had tasked the committees with determining how to handle Mkhwanazi’s allegations earlier this month that political interference in police operations led to direct instructions to shut down investigations into high-level criminal activity in KwaZulu-Natal.
Last year, Mkhwanzi told the Mail & Guardian that political interference remained one of the biggest obstacles to reforming the police service, saying the appointment and removal of senior officers was too often driven by party interests rather than operational needs.
During Wednesday’s joint sitting of the committees, parliament’s legal team warned MPs that a full-scale inquiry by the legislature would probably replicate the work of the judicial commission of inquiry established by President Cyril Ramaphosa and chaired by the acting deputy chief justice, Mbuyiseli Madlanga.
Legal adviser Andile Tetyana said parliament still had a constitutional obligation to exercise oversight but should do so through a streamlined, time-bound mechanism. He recommended the formation of an ad hoc committee under rule 253 of the National Assembly, which allows for temporary committees with a defined scope and duration.
“This is about accountability and improving police governance,” Tetyana told MPs.
He said the ad hoc committee could look into several specific issues raised by Mkhwanazi, including the disbanding of the political killings task team, the alleged removal of 121 case dockets by the minister, leadership instability in crime intelligence and the overlap in roles of the South African Police Service and the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid).
“Parliament’s control over the executive means influence, not direct power. It remains advice, not command; criticism, not obstruction,” Tetyana said.
The committees considered three options: a full parliamentary inquiry; invoking rule 169 to allow committees to confer; or establishing a new ad hoc committee. The latter was favoured as the least likely to cause jurisdictional overlap and the fact that it could conclude its work within a specific timeframe.
MPs also proposed that any interim reports produced by the presidential commission be made available to parliament to ensure coordination and oversight without interference.
The committees are expected to meet again next week to finalise the draft terms of reference and reporting timelines for the ad hoc committee. A formal recommendation is expected to be tabled in the National Assembly next Wednesday.
This comes as the police service grapples with the continued fallout from Mkhwanazi’s allegations.
On Tuesday, national police commissioner Fannie Masemola confirmed that deputy commissioner for crime detection Shadrack Sibiya had been placed on “special leave” pending an investigation into Mkhwanazi’s allegations, which also implicated him in wrongdoing.
Both Mchunu and Sibiya have denied any wrongdoing.
If the National Assembly approves the recommendation, the ad hoc committee will be empowered to summon witnesses, gather evidence, and deliver a report to parliament.