Phahlane should subject himself to a lifestyle audit after IPID allegations

23 November 2016

Reports today have revealed that the Acting National Police Commissioner, Khomotso Phahlane, is under investigation for seemingly living above and beyond what his salary should allow and further that he contacted witnesses in the investigation, prompting the police watchdog, IPID, to charge him with defeating the ends of justice.

These allegations raise serious questions about his fitness to hold office as the head of our country’s police service and must be dealt with efficiently and professionally.

While we wait for the outcomes of the charges into defeating the ends of justice, the DA will write to Phahlane, to strongly suggest that he voluntarily subject himself to a lifestyle audit. If the Acting Commissioner has nothing to hide, he should have no problem with this and should agree.

Phahlane has inspired more confidence than his predecessors and the allegations of impropriety, if true, would damage the credibility of SAPS as a whole.

Phahlane is now the fourth consecutive police head to be implicated in wrongdoing during his tenure in office.

The SAPS can ill-afford to be rocked by instability in its top levels, especially during this sensitive stage when various turnaround plans are being implemented to improve the performance of the SAPS.

Our country is waging a war against crime and South Africans need to be able to trust that the top brass of the SAPS are beyond reproach.

Issued by Zakhele Mbhele, DA Shadow Minister of Police , 23 November 2016