Cachalia can confront SAPS rot or protect Ramaphosa's interests

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa's controversial decision to place Police Minister Senzo Mchunu on leave and appoint Professor Firoz Cachalia as Acting Minister of Police, effective August 1, has sparked turbulence within the upper echelons of the SAPS.

- CLYDE NS RAMALAINE

Days later, National Police Commissioner General Fanny Masemola placed Lieutenant-General Shadrack Sibiya, head of Crime Detection, on leave, prompting speculation that KZN Provincial Commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi may be next.

These shifts ignited widespread political speculation and disjointed warnings that any move against Mkhwanazi could provoke resistance.

While inflammatory rhetoric should not be condoned, it must be understood within the broader political volatility and a society that registers its displeasure with Ramaphosa and his ANC party, which continues to disrespect South Africans.

A key question emerges: Is there a connection between these rumblings and Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni’s recent reference to intelligence about a potential coup? Or is this mere coincidence?

The timing evokes memories of July 2021, when the president warned of an insurrection, although no government buildings were stormed. That episode, shaped more by strategic narrative management than decisive institutional response, sets a precedent for today's rhetoric - instability wrapped in vague intelligence briefings, masking internal state dysfunction.

Currently, Mchunu's leave and Cachalia's appointment are being challenged legally, as shown by a letter to the president from the MKP. Within this unstable terrain, Cachalia's response to Mkhwanazi's press conference on July 6 deserves closer scrutiny, not just for tone but for what it reveals about underlying tensions in the SAPS and the broader political ecosystem.