Security beefed up at Mkhwanazi's home after explosive allegations
This comes after the provincial top cop convened a press conference on Sunday and accused police minister Senzo Mchunu and senior police officials of interfering in political killings and being linked to organised crime.
Mkhwanazi said he was a hard-core police officer and was prepared to die for the police badge for telling the truth. 'I chose to be a police officer, and in many years in my career I have been involved in combat,' he said.
When TimesLIVE drove past the property on Tuesday, heavily armed national intervention unit members stood guard outside. Vehicles including an SUV and a VW golf 7 were outside the property.
A concerned business owner who runs a bed and breakfast establishment on the same road said he was alarmed by the high police presence at the property.
'I spoke to them because some cars were parked on the pavement. They were reluctant to give me answers [about their sudden presence]. Instead they jokingly asked if I was not happy to see I was well protected,' said the resident.
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Mail & Guardian
an hour ago
- Mail & Guardian
Economic apartheid: South Africa's transition a warning for a two-state agreement for Palestine
South Africa may have attained political emancipation but economically the chains largely remain. (File photo) South Africa is the most unequal society in the world. In one suburb, rows of tidy houses with manicured lawns and sparkling blue swimming pools portray a life of comfort and affluence. Yet just a short distance away, sprawling informal settlements tell a starkly different story — clusters of makeshift shelters cobbled together from corrugated iron, plastic sheeting and cardboard. These fragile structures offer little protection against the Cape's harsh winters. For thousands of South Africans, however, this is the daily reality — marked by inadequate access to clean water, electricity and sanitation. Under apartheid, black South Africans were forcibly removed to remote Bantustans and systematically barred from white urban areas through segregation laws and pass systems. After apartheid formally ended, millions migrated to cities like Johannesburg and Cape Town in search of work and a better future. But the post-apartheid state — hamstrung by the economic compromises made during the political transition — was ill-equipped to accommodate this wave of urban migration. The result has been the persistence — and in some ways the deepening — of inequality, now often described as 'economic apartheid'. Although a small black elite has joined the historically privileged white minority, the underlying economic structures have remained largely untouched. This continuity was no accident. During the early 1990s, national attention was focused on constitutional negotiations promising a non-racial democracy. In contrast, economic negotiations occurred quietly behind closed doors, with little public involvement or scrutiny. In many ways, South Africa's democracy was born in chains: politically emancipated, but economically constrained. Though the National Party was prepared to relinquish political power, it secured key economic concessions that severely limited the ANC's capacity to implement transformative reforms. Fundamental decisions regarding land redistribution, nationalisation and economic justice were effectively placed beyond the reach of the new democratic government — like land redistribution and economic restructuring. One of the most enduring constraints was section 25 of the 1996 Constitution, known as the 'property clause'. While this section affirms the state's duty to enable equitable access to land, it also enshrines strong protections for private property. Expropriation is only permitted under narrow conditions: it must serve the public interest and be accompanied by compensation. In practice, this has meant that land reform could only proceed under a 'willing buyer, willing seller' model — an approach that has been slow, prohibitively expensive and largely ineffective. 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Turning to Palestine, if a one-state solution is ultimately realised — a vision I strongly support — there remains a real risk that democratic processes reflecting the will of the majority may be obstructed. As history has shown, dominant economic classes often 'confuse, conquer and divide', relying on co-optation, manipulation and bribery to maintain control. In this context, Israeli economic dominance could persist — or even expand — paralleling the enduring power structures seen in post-apartheid South Africa. Nevertheless, it must be stated unequivocally: the two-state solution is not a path to justice. Borders do not resolve economic inequality. A two-state outcome would only entrench disparities, legitimising the vast gap between a first-world Israel and the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza and the West Bank, driven by decades of Israeli land confiscation, resource theft and the denial of Palestinian rights. 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Likewise, the right to self-determination, enshrined in Article 1 of both the ICESCR and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, guarantees not just political independence, but also the right of all peoples to freely pursue their economic, social, and cultural development. These principles must form the foundation of any post-apartheid vision in Palestine. The continued exploitation of Palestinian resources, the fragmentation of Palestinian territory, and the suffocating blockade on Gaza all constitute clear violations of international humanitarian and human rights law. Any political solution that fails to dismantle these economic structures and guarantee full Palestinian sovereignty — including control over borders, trade, and natural resources — falls short of the standard of justice required by international law. A two-state solution that legitimises economic asymmetry would amount to the legalisation of injustice. If Palestinians are to achieve true liberation, it must be a liberation that is not only political, but deeply rooted in economic equality, sovereignty, and binding international legal standards. Anything less risks repeating the unfinished revolution of post-apartheid South Africa. If Palestinians are to achieve true liberation, it must go beyond flags and borders. It must be a freedom rooted in justice — economic, political and legal — otherwise, history will repeat itself, and apartheid will wear a new face. Sõzarn Barday is a writer and attorney based in South Africa and has a particular interest in human rights within the Middle East. Opinions shared represent her individual perspective.
IOL News
an hour ago
- IOL News
Ramaphosa cannot delay acting on Mkhwanazi's claim
KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi has implicated Police Minister Senzo Mchunu in criminal syndicates. Image: Siyabulela Duda/ GCIS PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa's leadership has been one characterised by doubt, confusion and often lacking urgency in addressing some of the most pressing matters confronting the country. Mostly, he chooses to delegate his responsibilities to costly task teams, advisory councils and commissions when he is called to make bold decisions. On the face of it, Ramaphosa appears to be a president that seeks to always appease, depending on who the issue is about. What we are referring to is well documented and there is no need to dwell much on it. Suffice to ask how many people has he acted on when presented with evidence of wrongdoing? Not many really, except those that posed a significant threat to his political career. Nonetheless Ramaphosa has been accused of hiding behind 'due process' even in clear-cut cases that would, at face value, go a long way in dealing with the rot in the country's public service. That appears to have come back to bite him. The fact that KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi did not discuss the serious allegations against Police Minister Senzo Mchunu before coming out publicly can be viewed as a vote of no confidence in Ramaphosa's leadership. He has failed to act when called up to do so in the past. Indirectly that may have sent a signal out there that he would not do anything when presented with serious allegations against members of his party and Cabinet colleagues in the future. Ramaphosa says he will outline a way forward after engaging with a number of people regarding Mkhwanazi's claim implicating the police minister in criminal syndicates. He is yet to inform the nation about the outcome of his meeting with National Director of Public Prosecution Shamila Batohi on her statements that the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) had been infiltrated by unscrupulous prosecutors working with criminals to deliberately bungle cases. Herein lies a worrying pattern; that Rome is burning while Ramaphosa holds the fiddle. Phala Phala will not be the only stain that taints his leadership. How he acts on the Mchunu matter may make or break his legacy. At stake though is the safety of South Africans who are at the mercy of criminals holding our communities hostage.
The South African
3 hours ago
- The South African
Mkhwanazi's home on guard following death threats
Security has been beefed up outside KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi's home following death threats he received after making explosive allegations against Minister of Police Senzo Mchunu. National police commissioner General Fannie Masemola confirmed that KZN's top cop has been receiving death threats. Masemola said, 'We have beefed up his security, but there will be no persecution of any SAPS member.' Mkhwananzi held an intensive media briefing on Sunday, 6 July 2025, where he allegedly accused Mchunu of disbanding the Political Killings Task Team. Earlier this year, the Deputy National Commissioner, Lieutenant-General Shadrack Sibiya, withdrew all 121 case dockets from the Task Team to his office following orders made by Mchunu. Businessman and entrepreneur, Vusumuzi 'Cat' Matlala and Brown Mogotsi's names were also called out by Mkhwanazi. Both, together with Mchunu, are allegedly linked to a criminal syndicate controlled by a drug cartel that reportedly involves politicians, police officers, prosecutors, judicial figures and prominent businesspeople. Matlala's company, Medicare24 Tshwane District, received a R360 million tender from the South African Police Service (SAPS) health services. Mchunu denied knowing Matlala and said that he had never interacted with him. However, Mchunu's spokesperson, Kamogelo Mogotsi, mentioned that the minister initiated a review of the SAPS tender awarded to him following suspicions. Mkhwanazi also alleged that Mchunu had ties with Brown Mogotsi, a businessman from North West, who regularly influenced his decisions. Initially, Mchunu denied knowing Mogotsi in parliament but later changed his statement and said that he only knows him as just 'a comrade'. 'Whilst the minister knows and has met Mr. Brown Mogotsi, he is just a comrade and not an associate of the minister,' said Mogotsi, the minister's spokesperson. President Cyril Ramaphosa has assured that he will deal with those proven to have done wrong following allegations made by Commissioner Mkhwanazi. Speaking at the BRICS Summit in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, the president said that this was a matter that needed urgent attention. 'Obviously, it is a matter that I will be dealing with when I get home. I will need to look at it more closely and have a thorough, going discussion with a number of people, and thereafter, there will be a clear way forward. This is not a matter that we should not give attention to.' 'The police play a critical role at enhancing our law, the safety of South Africans, and that those who have done wrong should be dealt with thoroughly in terms of our constitution and our laws,' Ramaphosa said. Let us know by leaving a comment below or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
