The Man Behind the Silence: What Senzo Mchunu Finally Said About the Corruption Storm Tied to 121 Vanished Dockets
In South Africa’s ever-heated political scene, few things grab attention like whispers of a high-level cover-up. And now, Police Minister Senzo Mchunu, the man at the centre of a growing corruption scandal, has finally broken his silence—and what he said might just change how we see the storm swirling around the SAPS.
Speaking for the first time since he was placed on special leave, Mchunu addressed the serious allegations levelled against him, including claims that he helped disband a critical task team investigating politically motivated killings.
The man making these claims? Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, the KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner, who says the minister acted in tandem with senior police officials and an alleged "information dealer" to quietly shut down investigations into political violence. According to Mkhwanazi, 121 active dockets were suddenly taken off the table.
Mchunu’s reply? He says it’s time for the country to hear his side.
“Everything has its own time. There was a time of allegations — now it’s time for those accused, like me, to tell their side of the story,” he said during his public appearance at the ANC’s Mandela Day event in Empangeni, KZN.
He insisted that true justice must include both sides of any story, warning against what he described as a dangerous trend: one person acting as the accuser, investigator, and judge.
“That will be the end of South Africa,” Mchunu said. “It will crush and destroy the dream that all of us have had for years, struggling for justice in this country.”
While Mchunu appears calm and composed, the political fallout around him is anything but.
President Cyril Ramaphosa, under mounting pressure from protestors and opposition parties like the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party, has called for calm. Rather than fire Mchunu outright, Ramaphosa has taken a middle route—placing him on leave and announcing a Judicial Commission of Inquiry to investigate the claims.
His justification? Due process.
“Some have said that I should take immediate punitive steps against the Minister based on untested allegations,” the president told Parliament. “Not only would this be unfair, but it would create a dangerous precedent.”
But the MK Party isn’t buying it.
After giving Ramaphosa a formal ultimatum to resign by 9am on Friday, the party followed through with marches at the Union Buildings in Pretoria, demanding the immediate removal of Mchunu and Ramaphosa’s resignation.
Among their key grievances is Ramaphosa’s appointment of Professor Firoz Cachalia as acting police minister, set to take over from Gwede Mantashe—who is temporarily filling in—this August. The MK Party argues the appointment is unconstitutional because Cachalia is neither an MP nor a Cabinet member.
And as tensions rise, the story is far from over.
Will the Judicial Commission of Inquiry bring answers—or just more questions?
Will Mchunu’s side of the story clear his name—or deepen the controversy?
And will Ramaphosa weather this political storm—or buckle under rising pressure from the streets?
Whatever happens next, one thing is clear: 121 political killing dockets didn’t just vanish into thin air.
The truth may take time, but South Africa is watching.
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Do you believe Senzo Mchunu will be cleared? Or is this the beginning of something deeper in the SAPS and political landscape?
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Tags: #SenzoMchunu #PoliceScandal #SAPS #Ramaphosa #MKParty #SouthAfricaPolitics #CorruptionInquiry #FirozCachalia #PoliticalKillings
Source: iol.co.za
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