Suspended police minister Senzo Mchunu. Photo: Delwyn Verasamy
Deputy Police Minister Shela Boshielo has told parliament’s ad hoc committee on police corruption that suspended Police Minister Senzo Mchunu and National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola had a strained relationship that hampered coordination and worsened divisions at the top of the South African Police Service (SAPS).
“As deputy ministers, we raised a concern that the minister and national commissioner are not talking as much as they should, and as a result, it frustrates us and also frustrates other senior managers. And we asked them to sit down and sort whatever it is so we can be able to work,” she said.
Boshielo said the two senior officials often had “opposite views” on policy and operational matters and primarily communicated through formal letters rather than direct engagement.
“They were not seeing things the same, and it heightened tensions between them,” she said.
“We identified an issue of communication and some tensions,” she said, adding they were advised to “deal with it before it goes further.”
Boshielo said the communication breakdown between Mchunu and Masemola became particularly apparent around the December 2024 directive to disband the KwaZulu-Natal political killings task team, which has since become the subject of both the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry and parliament’s ongoing investigation.
The deputy minister also told MPs that tensions between KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi and suspended deputy national commissioner Shadrack Sibiya mirrored those at the national level.
She told the committee she first learned of Mchunu’s disbandment letter through social media — not through official channels — and that the decision was already finalised before she or other senior managers could intervene.
“There was nothing I could do. The letter was already written, the letter was given to the national commissioner, the letter was out on social media,” she said.
“Mchunu used his executive authority and felt he did not need to consult his deputies.”
The directive, which Mchunu has defended as an administrative decision, has been at the centre of fierce testimony before the Madlanga Commission.
On Wednesday, Crime Intelligence Head Dumisani Khumalo told the commission that the KZN task team’s methodology should have been adopted nationwide as a model for investigating organised crime, not disbanded.
Khumalo and Mkhwanazi have both described the task team as “highly effective” in solving politically motivated assassinations.
In contrast, Mchunu has maintained that the task team had fulfilled its purpose and was “no longer adding value.” At the same time, former police minister Bheki Cele has argued that Mchunu lacked the authority to dissolve the unit without consulting the Inter-Ministerial Committee or the national commissioner.
Boshielo said she was surprised by the minister’s decision to target the KwaZulu-Natal unit specifically, given that it had been briefed to the president and other ministers before the May 2024 elections and was widely regarded as successful.
“I don’t know what prompted him,” said Boshielo.
Co-Deputy Police Minister Cassel Mathale previously told the ad hoc committee that he was not consulted and that he learned of the letter through social media. This added to the number of officials not consulted by Mchunu.
Boshielo added that if she had been consulted before the directive was issued, she would have advised against it.
“If given the opportunity before the letter was sent, I would have,” Boshielo said.
The deputy minister said that in an attempt to address the worsening divisions, senior officials had called for a mediation meeting involving Mchunu, Sibiya and Mkhwanazi.
However, she said the effort failed when Mkhwanazi allegedly told colleagues that he “does not work with criminals”— a remark understood to refer to Mchunu and Sibiya.
“A meeting was recommended, including Sibiya and Mkhwanazi, to resolve internal disagreements. Mkhwanazi subsequently said he attended the meeting but does not work with criminals,” she said.
Her account echoes earlier testimony at the Madlanga Commission, where multiple witnesses described a collapse of trust and communication among SAPS top brass.
The inquiry has heard that rival factions within the police often act independently, competing for influence rather than cooperating on investigations.
Boshielo also told the committee that she had not been assigned any formal responsibilities by Mchunu more than a year into his tenure.
Since his suspension, acting police minister Firoz Cachalia has tasked her with overseeing gender-based violence (GBV) programmes.
When asked whether she believed Mchunu interfered in police operations to protect drug cartels — as alleged by KZN commissioner Mkhwanazi — Boshielo declined to speculate.
“I don’t know. I’m waiting for the Madlanga Commission and ad hoc commission to really bring that,” she said.
She warned, however, that unsubstantiated claims risk damaging individuals’ reputations.
“The danger is that anyone can implicate someone [without evidence],” she said.