Even before this week's decision by President Cyril Ramaphosa to institute an inquiry into Khehla Sitole's fitness for office, his position as national police commissioner had become untenable.
Sitole, together with two of his deputies, were found by the high court to have breached their duties by failing to co-operate with a probe by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid) into allegations of wrongdoing in the upper echelons of the police.
The allegations include corrupt procurement - among other things, Sitole and others are accused of trying to buy, at around the time of the ANC's 2017 elective conference, sophisticated equipment for the interception of cellphone calls.
The court ordered that all the evidence sought by Ipid be immediately declassified and handed over to the agency. Sitole challenged the high court's findings in the Supreme Court of Appeal, but his appeal was dismissed with costs.
In March, police minister Bheki Cele asked the president to institute an investigation into Sitole. This week Ramaphosa announced the establishment of a board of inquiry.
This means Sitole has lost the confidence and trust not only of his political head, but of the president too. This makes it impossible for him to remain in his crucial position. Anyone leading the fight against crime should have an unblemished record, with no dark clouds hanging over them.
Any instability and tension in the topmost ranks of the police will be of concern to all South Africans. For without a stable and coherent leadership, the service itself cannot be fixed, nor can it win the war against the crime levels that threaten the security of every South African.
Not only does the ineffectuality of the police worry ordinary citizens, it also poses a grave threat to our economy, which has barely begun to recover from the devastating blow of Covid. Businesses, and the economy in general, bore the brunt of the July riots.
The riots exposed and amplified weaknesses in the police - their inability to gather and act upon intelligence, to protect lives and property or to apprehend wrongdoers.
The fact that the police, as far as we know, have yet to identify or arrest the masterminds behind the mayhem is an indictment of the service.
It has serious implications for the economy, because it makes business and investors believe the government cannot guarantee the security of investments. It similarly undermines the confidence of consumers.
The demonstrated inability of the police to secure life and property means increased costs both for businesses and citizens, because they have to procure the services of private security operators at great expense. This despite the substantial tax burden they already bear.
He wields political capital that the president cannot afford to lose
But if Sitole is under a cloud, Cele himself has questions to answer, particularly over police failings in connection with the July riots and looting.
As the political head of the police, Cele should be held to account for the performance, or lack thereof, of his officers.
But given the power balance in the ANC, and the political minefield the president has to navigate when it comes to major decisions - such as what to do with the likes of former defence minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula - it is unlikely there will be consequences for Cele.
He is, after all, one of Ramaphosa's more dependable supporters, and hails from the ANC's fractious KwaZulu-Natal power base. He wields political capital that the president cannot afford to lose.
Again, South Africans must wonder for how much longer the national interest will be at the mercy of the ruling party's internal intrigue and shenanigans.
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