Suspended police minister Senzo Mchunu has defended his directive to disband the political killings task team (PKTT).
Testifying before parliament’s ad hoc committee investigating allegations of corruption in the criminal justice system made by KZN police commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, Mchunu maintained he was well within his rights as a minister to issue the directive.
“It’s a decision I took, and I’m responsible for it, and I stand by it,” he said. “I believe very strongly that the constitution allows the minister to take the decision I took. It was a lawful decision.”
Budget constraints were another reason to discontinue funding for the unit, he added
“Throughout our discussions with SAPS management from when we arrived, there was always a focus and emphasis on the decreased budget within SAPS. You’d ask, ‘Why don’t you do this?’ They would say, ‘There’s no money.’ This was lingering in my mind to say, where can we make better use of resources in SAPS in terms of budget?
“The budget allocated to SAPS became one of the reasons I wrote to the SAPS to give effect to more optimisation of our resources.”
Mchunu is due to face tough interrogation by MPs this week over his allegedly unlawful decision to disband the PKTT, which was apparently not sanctioned by either President Cyril Ramaphosa or the interministerial committee established to oversee the matter.
There are allegations that his decision to dissolve the PKTT was influenced by a need to protect criminal syndicates.
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