Former police watchdog head Robert McBride has spoken in Parliament about several political scandals, including how a former head of the Hawks was allegedly targeted for giving the thumbs-up to an investigation into renovations previously made at former president Jacob Zuma’s residence. Former Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) head Robert McBride has dredged up a past scandal involving former president Jacob Zuma – renovations at his KwaZulu-Natal residence in Nkandla that included what was initially sold to Parliament and the public as a security-related “fire pool”. McBride referred to the controversial pool while testifying at Parliament’s ad hoc committee on Wednesday, 21 January 2026.
The committee is investigating accusations that a drug cartel has infiltrated the country’s criminal justice system, politics and private security. Those allegations were first made by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi in July last year. Wednesday marked the second day that McBride, who now heads the State Security Agency’s Foreign Branch, testified before the ad hoc committee, whose members had a chance to ask him questions.
On his first day, he made striking allegations against Mkhwanazi, suggesting he did not trust the policeman. Wednesday’s proceedings became extremely heated and even sensitive at times. McBride, addressing the risks associated with the type of work he was involved in and what he was testifying about, said he understood it could be the last time he appeared in Parliament.
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At another point during the proceedings, ActionSA’s Dereleen James put it to McBride that he previously had a romantic relationship with an associate of forensic investigator Paul O’Sullivan, whose name has repeatedly surfaced throughout the overall proceedings as someone allegedly meddling in policing matters. McBride denied it.
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