Phiyega charges a plot, says Popcru

Published Nov 16, 2015

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Johannesburg - The impending fraud and perjury charges against suspended National Police Commissioner Riah Phiyega was a well-calculated plot by those who do not want to be led by a woman.

This was the reaction of the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (Popcru) on Sunday after the Minister of Police Nathi Nhleko announced his intention to charge Phiyega.

Popcru president Zizamele Cebekhulu cried foul over the Reference Group report which recommended the charges and said his union was not consulted about the report.

“They did not consult the stakeholders in the police service. They spoke only to the other union.

“We were not consulted. Out of 200 000 people in the police, we have 160 000 members. They did not even call the commissioner,” he said.

“This shows how the minister was desperate to pronounce the guilt of Phiyega without giving her the right to reply. The law is not approached like that. What is this desperation all about?” Cebekhulu asked.

He said the desperation was due to senior male managers in the police service who were opposed to being led by a woman and thus they allegedly connived in the plot.

“They do not want to be led by a woman. Phiyega never committed any act of fraud. They must tell us how much Phiyega took out of the public purse,” Cebekhulu said.

Supporting his view of a plot, he said police managers and Nhleko were not satisfied that the terms of reference given to the commission charged with investigating Phiyega’s fitness to hold office, were enough to secure her guilt.

“At the height of this worrying trend is its handling of the manner they publicly lambasted top police officials and the nine provincial commissioners for their statement in support of Phiyega, and therefore, accusing them of stepping into the political arena.

“The fact that they were responding to allegations that the SAPS management was at war with itself and that there was a rupture was simply ignored.

“It can definitely not be correct that the SAPS managers are publicly condemned and intimidated in the manner the portfolio committee did,” Popcru secretary-general Nathi Theledi said.

He said the latest impending charges were for them to kick her out of the service.

Cebekhulu also accused Nhleko of not having a plan to steer the police service into the future.

“Nhleko’s plan is just Judge (Ian) Farlam’s recommendations,” he said.

Responding to the Popcru comments through his spokesman Musa Zondi, Nhleko said he had announced the details about the reference group to everyone.

Nhleko said that if Popcru had a problem, they were welcome to raise it and that all the issues that were covered were not new.

“Who didn’t know about Richard Mdluli,” Zondi said.

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The Star

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