South African News

WATCH | 121 political killings dockets under scrutiny | Madlanga Commission

Kamogelo Moichela|Updated

SAPS Major-General Mary Motsepe is testifying at the Madlanga Commission in Pretoria on Monday.

Image: Kamogelo Moichela/IOL News

Madlanga Commission said it would hear testimony from two witnesses linked to the 121 dockets moved from the KZN Political Killings Task Team (PKTT) to national police headquarters in Pretoria.

The transfers, first exposed in July 6 by KZN Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, sit at the centre of a widening controversy inside the SAPS.

Mkhwanazi has alleged the dockets were irregularly removed from the PKTT and left “collecting dust” in the office of suspended Deputy National Police Commissioner Shadrack Sibiya.

He further suggested the move shielded individuals implicated in the politically sensitive investigations.

Sibiya has rejected the claims, insisting he acted on formal instructions to temporarily house the dockets, and later told Parliament’s ad hoc committee he had followed a directive issued by National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola.

Masemola subsequently confirmed in August that the dockets were returned to the PKTT to resume active investigation.

The commission has not disclosed the identity of the next witness, but sources indicate testimony will again centre on the handling, movement and oversight of the 121 files—an issue that continues to stir debate over police chain-of-command integrity.

Meanwhile, last week, the commission heard testimony on the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD), where witnesses described suspended deputy police chief Julius Mkhwanazi as a feared powerbroker who allegedly silenced dissent and torpedoed careers.

He is linked to the blue-light saga involving alleged Big Five cartel figure Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala.

kamogelo.moichela@iol.co.za

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