ANC veteran Phosa: Indecision won’t work, Ramaphosa must dismiss Mchunu immediately

ANC veteran Mathews Phosa has urged President Cyril Ramaphosa to immediately dismiss the suspended Police Minister, Senzo Mchunu, arguing that this will send a zero tolerance message to those implicated in wrongdoing.

In an interview with the SABC on Tuesday, Phosa said this will send shocking lessons to everyone, but it will help clear the deck.

“If the commissioner is implicated, he must be fired now; no one must be protected. Now. It will send a shock through the system.

“There can’t be a middle road; there’s no middle in dealing with crime. You must take action, executive action,” he said.

He said, “Indecisiveness is no longer what the President can afford.”

Phosa’s statements come a week after the ANC accepted Mchunu’s decision to step aside from the party activities.

Mchunu is accused of being in cahoots with criminals who are actually cartel members.

KZN police commissioner, Lt-Gen. Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi claimed Mchunu was protecting criminals for his own benefit.

But Mchunu has since denied any wrongdoing.

Two committees, the Madlanga Commission and the Parliament ad hoc are investigating the veracity of the claims.

Asked whether the situation reminded them of how former Presidents Thabo Mbeki and Jacob Zuma we removed, Phosa said there was decisiveness with the two.

“A resolution was taken in the early hours of the morning, the same morning, said, you have to resign and Mbeki was very honourable, he resigned.

“Zuma sat with me in his house the night before he was going to resign… He said, What do you think?

“I think, President, please, I love you, you must go. And the following day, he left,” he said.

According to Phosa, the NEC is not brave enough to tell Ramaphosa to go.

“If they wanted to say so, they could say so tomorrow,” he said.

Meanwhile, over the past weekend, Ramaphosa dared those who are about his succession to stop, saying he would resign if he was told.

kamogelo.moichela@io.co.za

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