Eastern Cape police commissioner Lieutenant-General Celiwe Binta has been sacked by acting national commissioner General Khomotso Phahlane, in a move police unions have described as a purge.
She joins a growing list of provincial police commissioners shown the door by Phahlane since he took over the top job following the suspension of Riah Phiyega.
Mdingi said the acting commissioner was purging senior officers seen to be sympathetic towards Phiyega.
The sacked police chiefs were among a group of provincial commissioners who wrote a letter to parliament pledging their support for Phiyega in the wake of the Marikana Commission of Inquiry findings against her.
They later apologised to the National Assembly following criticism from MPs.
Phahlane’s spokesman Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi denied there was a purge of pro-Phiyega officers. He said the restructuring was part of the new “back-to-basics” project within the police.
Binta, 56, joined the police in 1981 and was appointed provincial commissioner by former national police commissioner Bheki Cele in July 2011.
Binta this week declined to comment saying that the matter was between the “employer and employee”.
Mki, who last November bagged the award for Newsmaker of the Year at the SAPS Annual Excellence awards in East London for successfully conducting Operation Fiela activities, has now been reduced to a “desk job” at the police headquarters in Zwelitsha. His demotion also saw him withdrawn from Operation Lock Down – a police counter-gang violence plan in Port Elizabeth launched in March.
A source at the provincial police headquarters confirmed Mki’s days as head of police operations in the province were over.
“He is no longer in the policing environment, he is frustrated by the move – he considers his new office a dumpsite.”
Chairman of the portfolio committee on police in the Bhisho legislature Michael Peter – from the ANC – said Binta and Mki had managed to reduce crime in the province. “It was our hope that they would keep the momentum going. We fear the restructuring is going to create instability and uncertainty among members of the SAPS.”
DA spokesman for safety and security Bobby Stevenson said while a change was needed at the top of the police in the province, they hoped the move was not motivated by politics.
“Any changes that are made in this province must be made strictly for operational reasons, not politicking. We have huge problems of gangsterism in Port Elizabeth, shortages of vehicles and visible policing, we need a fresh approach,” said Stevenson.
Mki has been replaced by the Mdantsane Cluster Commander Major-General Andre Swart.
Mdingi said the move constituted a “reversal of the transformation of SAPS”.
“If Phahlane is honest and genuine, why did he not consult with the affected members properly?”
Mulaudzi said the police were not politicians and they were only interested in “dealing with crime”.
“If there are issues that Popcru want to raise they know exactly where to find us,” he said. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
YOU’RE FIRED! Eastern Cape top cop booted in national police purge
She joins a growing list of provincial police commissioners shown the door by Phahlane since he took over the top job following the suspension of Riah Phiyega.
Mdingi said the acting commissioner was purging senior officers seen to be sympathetic towards Phiyega.
The sacked police chiefs were among a group of provincial commissioners who wrote a letter to parliament pledging their support for Phiyega in the wake of the Marikana Commission of Inquiry findings against her.
They later apologised to the National Assembly following criticism from MPs.
Phahlane’s spokesman Brigadier Hangwani Mulaudzi denied there was a purge of pro-Phiyega officers. He said the restructuring was part of the new “back-to-basics” project within the police.
Binta, 56, joined the police in 1981 and was appointed provincial commissioner by former national police commissioner Bheki Cele in July 2011.
Binta this week declined to comment saying that the matter was between the “employer and employee”.
Mki, who last November bagged the award for Newsmaker of the Year at the SAPS Annual Excellence awards in East London for successfully conducting Operation Fiela activities, has now been reduced to a “desk job” at the police headquarters in Zwelitsha. His demotion also saw him withdrawn from Operation Lock Down – a police counter-gang violence plan in Port Elizabeth launched in March.
A source at the provincial police headquarters confirmed Mki’s days as head of police operations in the province were over.
“He is no longer in the policing environment, he is frustrated by the move – he considers his new office a dumpsite.”
Chairman of the portfolio committee on police in the Bhisho legislature Michael Peter – from the ANC – said Binta and Mki had managed to reduce crime in the province. “It was our hope that they would keep the momentum going. We fear the restructuring is going to create instability and uncertainty among members of the SAPS.”
DA spokesman for safety and security Bobby Stevenson said while a change was needed at the top of the police in the province, they hoped the move was not motivated by politics.
“Any changes that are made in this province must be made strictly for operational reasons, not politicking. We have huge problems of gangsterism in Port Elizabeth, shortages of vehicles and visible policing, we need a fresh approach,” said Stevenson.
Mki has been replaced by the Mdantsane Cluster Commander Major-General Andre Swart.
Mdingi said the move constituted a “reversal of the transformation of SAPS”.
“If Phahlane is honest and genuine, why did he not consult with the affected members properly?”
Mulaudzi said the police were not politicians and they were only interested in “dealing with crime”.
“If there are issues that Popcru want to raise they know exactly where to find us,” he said. — zwangam@dispatch.co.za
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