The fight in the police top brass took a dramatic turn at the weekend with a public fallout between KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi and provincial Hawks head Maj-Gen Lesetja Senona. The drama between Mkhwanazi and Senona escalated on Sunday afternoon with Mkhwanazi releasing a bizarre statement detailing his reasons for throwing Senona out of his office on Saturday. Mkhwanazi accused Senona of breaching protocol by going to his office on a weekend and not signing the register.
The public spat between the two senior South African Police Service officials has raised concerns about reputational damage to the SAPS and hampering its efforts to fight crime. Unisa criminal expert Prof. Rudolph Zinn said what happened on Saturday was politics playing out within the police’s top ranks.
“This seems to be petty politics that is playing out again. It’s a power play that is being displayed here,” Zinn said. “They now react like children and they don’t do what they’re supposed to do professionally.” He said the public should be concerned because police leadership should be objective and professional at all times.
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“We need to be very careful that people do not destroy the police force and government structures,” he said. He added that the public spat could also affect police strategies to fight crime. The news of Senona being escorted out of his office broke on Saturday, and his lawyer, Rudolph Baloyi, said his client was approached by a police officer in his office and asked to leave the premises under the instruction of Mkhwanazi.
Baloyi said the national Hawks office did not know about Mkhwanazi’s order. Explaining Saturday’s events, police spokesperson Col Robert Netshiunda said several unusual events had unfolded, which led to Senona being evicted from the office.
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