MPs outraged at parly legal advisor's rebuff to Mkhwanazi

YESTERDAY, MPs raised their concerns when a parliamentary legal advisor suggested that KwaZulu-Natal's Police Commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi's allegations were technically not evidence.

- MAYIBONGWE MAQHINA

It emerged when the Ad Hoc Committee, which was mandated to investigate Mkhwanazi's allegations, met for the first time to discuss some of its preparations, such as the terms of reference and getting prisoners to testify as witnesses.

Responding to the questions, parliamentary legal advisor Andile Tetyana said there was a draft terms of reference that could be released in two or three days to MPs for comments.

Tetyana also said there was a lot of backroom legal technical support that must take place, and that witnesses would need to be identified.

"I am saying this with the greatest of respect. What General Mkhwanazi said on 6 July 2025 was not evidence in a technical sense. Of course, one would need a legal person to go around speaking to people, who will be able to corroborate what Lieutenant-General Mkhwanazi said. The committee can't do that, and, of course, you need sworn statements from witnesses drafted and so on. That is the kind of work that will take place in the next two to three weeks," he said.

EFF leader Julius Malema questioned where the remark about Mkhwanazi said was not evidence came from.

"You can't start by saying what General Mkhwanazi said is not evidence. That is very dismissive. Right at the beginning, we are starting on the wrong footing.