The City of Tshwane is mourning the death of former Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD) chief Steven Ngobeni, who exited office in 2017 due to political pressure he faced under ex-mayor Solly Msimanga.
Prior to assuming power post the 2016 municipal election, Msimanga said he wanted to replace Ngobeni with a career policeman after he was appointed to the mayoral office.
On April 6, 2017, Ngobeni was accused of refusing to execute Msimanga’s orders to remove rowdy ANC councillors from a council chamber at the Tshwane Events Centre during the State of the Capital Address.
At the time, former municipal manager Dr Moeketsi Mosola suspended him for a day.
Msimanga pronounced that his relationship with Ngobeni had “hit rock bottom”.
Ngobeni subsequently reached an agreement with the municipality through his legal team to part ways.
He was replaced by Lieutenant-General Johanna Nkomo, who boasted extensive experience in the SAPS.
TMPD spokesperson senior superintendent Isaac Mahamba said his department was saddened by the passing of Ngobeni at the weekend but didn’t disclose the cause of his death.
“‘Chief’, as Ngobeni was fondly known, was at the helm of TMPD for five years from 2012 to 2017,” he said.
Ngobeni joined the municipality in 1995 as a security official and became a member of the TMPD in 2002.
He meteorically rose through the ranks and was promoted to a directorship position in 2006.
Mahamba said Ngobeni spent an illustrious 22 years in the service of the residents of Tshwane before stepping down in 2017.
The current TMPD chief of police, commissioner Yolanda Faro, hailed Ngobeni as one of the people who helped shape the police department into what it is today.
“I used to engage regularly with chief Ngobeni at the chiefs/commissioners forum and found him to be a humble, dedicated and committed cop. On behalf of TMPD, I wish to express my deepest condolences to his family. May his departed soul find rest,” said Faro, who is the former Nelson Mandela Bay metro police chief.
Pretoria News