GAUTENG PREMIER DENIES REQUESTING POLICE DOCKETS, CALLS TESTIMONY MISLEADING

Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has denied ever issuing or requesting police dockets, describing testimony by suspended Sedibeng District Commissioner Brigadier Nkwashu before the Madlanga Commission as baffling and misleading.

A letter from the Gauteng Provincial Commissioner, Lieutenant General Tommy Mthombeni, addressed to the Premier, confirms that it was the Provincial Commissioner not the Premier who requested the dockets.

The correspondence further clarifies that the coordination of wanted suspects and the processing of J50 warrants fall under the mandate of the Deputy Provincial Commissioner for Crime Detection, Major General Khumalo, in consultation with Crime Intelligence.

Premier Lesufi reiterated his respect for the separation of powers and the operational independence of the South African Police Service.

He also reaffirmed his support for the Commission’s work and invited Brigadier Nkwashu to provide a written copy of the alleged directive or order.

The Premier’s office says the suspended Sedibeng District Commissioner appears to have confused internal SAPS directives issued by the Provincial Commissioner between April and June 2025 with routine briefings to the Premier’s office on crime prevention strategies, including the Eyes and Ears programme.

The Eyes and Ears initiative, launched in 2019, is a formal crime-fighting partnership involving the SAPS, Business Against Crime South Africa, and the Private Security Industry. It aims to improve coordination and strengthen responses to crime.

“We support the work of the Madlanga Commission, and we will use the proper legal channels to correct any misleading or incorrect statements that are part of the official record. We also urge everyone to let the Commission finish its work, without giving in to any temptation to create sensationalism,” said Lesufi.