‘Ignore meddling Cele’, EFF tells General Fannie Masemola

South Africa’s new police commissioner, General Fannie Masemola, has already been given advice on how best to focus on the task at hand on a political front.

Masemola was appointed by President Cyril Ramaphosa on Thursday, and reportedly assured Ramaphosa he was “up to the task”, and “determined to serve the people of South Africa.”

“I am certain he will do us proud,” Ramaphosa said.

Masemola, the former deputy national commissioner for policing who has also served as Limpopo’s provincial police commissioner, replaced outgoing Khehla Sitole.

Sitole’s last day in office was on Thursday, after reaching an agreement of mutual termination of contract with Ramaphosa. He was appointed by former president Jacob Zuma in 2017, without applying for or being promoted to the position.

This came after it was confirmed last October that Sitole was facing suspension, and had been invited to make a case to Ramaphosa against the move at the time.

Sitole and Police Minister Bheki Cele had also been at loggerheads over a number of issues, including the South African Police Service’s (Saps) response to the deadly July unrest in 2021.

‘Ignore Cele’

In a statement issued on Friday morning, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) lauded Masemola’s appointment, and were optimistic he would deal with the country’s spate of violent crime “decisively”.

The said the part he played in securing peace in KwaZulu-Natal after the country’s  1994 democratic transition was instrumental.

But in order for him to focus on the “great task” at hand as police commissioner, the party said Masemola had to “ignore the self-obsessed meddling of… Cele, who will undoubtedly seek to impose his will on the commissioner and undermine his administrative authority.”

“As such, the EFF calls on the newly appointed commissioner to fiercely resist the disruptive influence of Bheki Cele and focus on the task at hand, which is drastically reducing crime and ensuring perpetrators fear the arm of the law in South Africa,” the party continued.

They want Masemola to quell gang wars on the Cape flats in the Western Cape, for women and children to find justice at police stations, and to root out “factionalism and criminality within Saps”.

“The EFF is hopeful that this will be a new chapter in the fight to combat criminal activities in South Africa, and that our streets will no longer be places of crippling fear and injustice.”

Compiled by Nica Richards.