Release of police-gang links report is victory for transparency, accountability

OUR persistence has paid off. Western Cape Premier Alan Winde finally released the long-awaited report launched by the Western Cape Police Ombudsman following allegations of capture of the SAPS in the province.

- LISA ISAACS, NICOLA DANIELS and SIYAVUYA MZANTSI

The report was handed over to Winde in 2022, but since then has been kept away from the public. It boggles the mind why the premier adopted this stance, when at face value, the report would have benefited the public, especially communities that are being ravaged by gang violence.

It’s precisely this concern that we (Cape Times editor Siyavuya Mzantsi, content manager Lisa Isaacs, and senior multimedia reporter Nicola Daniels) decided that Winde owed it to the public that he releases the report. We began asking serious questions about why the report continued being kept a secret from the public when KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi put his and his family’s life on the line, exposing the alleged infiltration of the SAPS at the national level.

Mkhwanazi named his boss, police minister Senzo Mchunu as being central in aiding criminal syndicates, citing his decision to disband the political killings task team.

That's bravery we should all commend and exemplify, especially public representatives.