Ramaphosa banks on latest probe to pacify the nation

We need protection. We need justice. We need change.

- RENEVA FOURIE

LAST Sunday, Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi shook the country when he stood before the media and highlighted the existence of criminal syndicates operating inside our law enforcement structures. He demonstrated that optics matter.

What followed from the Union Buildings was a response that felt too calm, given the moment's urgency. President Cyril Ramaphosa’s address to the nation a week later was measured and careful.

He announced the formation of a judicial commission to investigate the infiltration of law enforcement and the wider criminal justice system. He placed Minister Senzo Mchunu on leave. And he promised accountability.

For millions of South Africans who live under the rule of fear, violence, and economic desperation every day, this announcement has to become more than just another costly performance of concern. It must be a genuine turning point. It must be the moment where justice stops being a privilege enjoyed by the powerful and starts becoming a lived reality for the poor and vulnerable.

Mkhwanazi’s revelations were nothing short of devastating. A “sophisticated criminal syndicate” had allegedly infiltrated the police, prosecutors, and even elements of the judiciary. He further accused the Minister of Police of interfering in sensitive investigations and disbanding the very task teams set up to fight political killings in KwaZulu-Natal. The revelations exposed corruption and the betrayal of our Constitution, as well as the hopes of every South African who still dares to believe in justice.