MANYANE MANYANE
THE uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) has described Police Minister Senzo Mchunu’s decision to dissolve the task team into political killings as reckless.
The party said political assassinations remained a significant concern in South Africa, particularly in provinces such as Kwazulu-Natal.
The MKP added that it had also been the victim of these killings in recent times.
Mchunu last week issued a directive for the National Police Commissioner Lieutenant-General Fannie Masemola to disband the task team into political killings.
He said that based on his observations over the last few months, the further existence of this team was no longer required and was not adding value to policing in the country.
The Moerane Commission, established in 2016, investigated the underlying causes of political killings in Kwazulu-Natal and made comprehensive recommendations for addressing political violence in the province.
Following these recommendations, the inter-ministerial task team was formed in 2019 with the key recommendations saying there was a need to stop, investigate and resolve unresolved murders of politicians in the country, especially in KZN, which has been dubbed the epicentre of these killings.
MKP spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela said dissolving a specialised task team undermines progress in tackling this ‘endemic issue’.
He said the Moerane Commission report highlighted the systemic nature of political killings in KwaZulu-Natal, noting that many murders stem from internal political battles, competition over resources and access to state contracts.
Ndhlela said reports indicated that the task team had made notable strides in recent years.
“For example, between 2018 and 2022, it successfully arrested suspects linked to over 40 political killings, leading to convictions in several cases. Disbanding the team erases this momentum and compromises ongoing investigations,” he said.
He added that disbanding this team also risks justice for victims and their families as there are 120 unresolved political murder cases and many of these require the specialised focus that a task team offers.
Ndhlela said countries with political violence, such as Colombia and the Philippines, have shown that specialised task forces are critical in addressing politically motivated crimes.
“The MK Party views this decision as not only reckless but also a direct threat to South Africa’s democratic framework. Section 198 of the Constitution emphasises the need for security services to protect the people of South Africa and ensure their safety. Dissolving this task team is a violation of that mandate and emboldens perpetrators of political violence.”
“The MK Party will immediately raise this matter with the Portfolio Committee on Police. We will demand a full explanation of the rationale behind this decision and present evidence of the task team’s critical role. Furthermore, we will push for the reinstatement and expansion of this team to address the backlog of unsolved cases,” Ndhlela said.
Asked to explain the decision further, Mchunu’s spokesperson Kamogelo Mogotsi said the ministry would not comment on the matter.
However, Rise Mzansi’s MP Makashule Gana said the party’s position on task teams within SAPS is that they are temporary to address a pressing crime issue, adding that once the task is completed, the task team should be dissolved and members of the team reassigned to other immediate pressing crime concerns.
Gana added that the indications are that the team has performed its task and what is left would be attended to by general policing and detective officers.
His sentiments were echoed by political analyst Levy Ndou who said this was the right decision as there were no longer incidents of political killings.
“That task team was created because there were political killings and now we don’t have political killings for such a unit. When they (police) were making assessments they realised that they no longer have killings that are politically motivated and took a decision to disband the unit,” Ndou said.
An independent crime expert and violence monitor Mary de Haas believes Mchunu would not have acted without doing his own investigation.
De Haas said Mchunu, unlike the previous ministers, was also following proper procedures in requesting feedback from the National Commissioner and was acting in terms of laws and policies.
De Haas in October wrote to Mchunu to disband the task team and establish a judicial oversight body.
She said the task team was a gross waste of personnel and financial resources.
De Haas said Mchunu should prioritise the establishment of a judicial oversight body to investigate the dockets taken by the task team because there was a great deal of other information about the grossly irregular conduct of the unit.
“There is a great deal more information about the suspicious and criminal actions of this task team, so the mandate of such a body should specifically allow others with relevant information, including about all matters it has handled, to provide information to it in confidence to assist with investigations,” she said.