South African President suspends police minister and launches probe into alleged links to criminals

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa connected Sunday (July 13, 2025) suspended the country's constabulary curate and announced an probe into allegations helium has been colluding with transgression syndicates.

Mr. Ramaphosa's actions travel allegations made by a apical constabulary authoritative successful the KwaZulu-Natal province, Gen. Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, that Senzo Mchunu and lawman constabulary commissioner Shadrack Sibiya had interfered with delicate investigations.

Mr. Ramaphosa said the probe volition beryllium headed by a judge, and announced Firoz Cachalia arsenic the acting curate of police.

“The committee volition analyse the relation of existent oregon erstwhile elder officials successful definite institutions who whitethorn person aided oregon abetted the alleged transgression activity, failed to enactment connected credible quality oregon interior warnings, oregon benefited financially oregon politically from a syndicate’s operations,” Mr. Ramaphosa said during a televised code connected Sunday.

During a property briefing past Sunday, Mr. Mkhwanazi besides alleged that Mchunu and Sibiya disbanded a important transgression portion tasked with investigating repeated politically motivated killings successful the state aft it was revealed that transgression syndicates were down the killings.

He alleged that an probe by the portion showed that immoderate “politicians, instrumentality enforcement, SAPS (South African Police Service), metro constabulary and correctional services, prosecutors, judiciary” were being “controlled by cause cartels and arsenic good arsenic businesspeople.”

The probe would see immoderate of the country's transgression and justness agencies, including the National Prosecuting Authority and the State Security Agency, Mr. Ramaphosa said.

Most absorption parties connected Sunday criticized Mr. Ramaphosa for not firing Mchunu alternatively of placing him connected a permission of absence.

“This was an accidental to instrumentality South Africans into assurance and to woody with these issues decisively, alternatively helium calls for a committee of enquiry and expects South Africans to beryllium diligent erstwhile radical are dying connected a regular basis,” said Nhlamulo Ndhlela, spokesperson of authoritative absorption MK Party.