Former Hawks boss in Gauteng‚ Major-General Shadrack Sibiya on Wednesday said his investigation of former crime intelligence boss‚ Richard Mdluli turned out to be a career limiting move for him.
Sibiya was called by the court to explain his role in the string of charges that Mdluli and his co-accused‚ Mthembeni Mthunzi‚ are on trial for.
Addressing the South Gauteng High Court‚ Sibiya said back in 2010‚ deputy national police commissioner‚ General Godfrey Lebeya had tasked him to probe Mdluli following an article in the Sowetan.
At the time‚ Mdluli was his senior.
The article was reported to have had raised questions about how Mdluli was appointed to be the head of crime intelligence while he faced “serious allegations”.
These allegations referred to‚ amongst other things‚ Mdluli’s alleged involvement in the murder of his love rival‚ Oupa Ramogibe‚ who was gunned down in Vosloorus in 1999.
Sibiya said when Lebeya approached him about the article‚ he told him that there had never been a formal investigation conducted so he did not know how to respond to the media questions which had been raised.
He was tasked with investigating the allegations.
Sibiya labeled the investigation as “Ulimbambe lingashoni” meaning don’t let the sun go down on you.
He explained why.
“I have never heard of anyone like myself being tasked to investigate a head of intelligence of the country. To me‚ I could see this was a career limiting investigation. I knew it would affect many people. It affected me‚” Sibiya told the court.
“And the sun did set on me. Not only on me‚ but on all who were involved. I find myself on the outside [of the police force] because of this project‚” Sibiya said.
He and the national Hawks boss‚ Anwa Dramat were booted out of the unit in 2015 for the unlawful rendition of Zimbabwean nationals back in 2010‚ the same year they instituted the investigation which led to Mdluli’s demise.
Sibiya said before his probe of Mdluli‚ Berning Ntlemeza‚ who was at the time the deputy head of the Limpopo police‚ had written a report relating to the allegations Mdluli faced. The report had cleared Mdluli of any wrongdoing.
“The report cleared the accused [Mdluli] but it did not balance. It had no logic. His recommendations and sanctions did not correspond… All of a sudden‚ [Anwat] Dramat and I were suspended and all of a sudden‚ Ntlemeza was appointed in Dramat’s position‚” said Sibiya.
Ntlemeza’s appointment as Hawks boss was last week declared invalid.
Sibiya’s battle for reinstatement is set to continue in the Labour Court.
Mdluli and Mthunzi face a series of charges including kidnapping‚ assault‚ intimidation and defeating the ends of justice.
These relate to acts of terror that the pair allegedly performed as they sought Mdluli’s love rival Ramogibe‚ who had gone on to marry Tshidi Buthelezi in secret.
An inquest had cleared them of any involvement in Ramogibe’s murder.
Mdluli has testified that all of the allegations and the investigation that Sibiya had oversight of was all part of a plot to block him from advancing in his career as he had had his eyes set on a national police commissioner post.
He claimed that witnesses were coached to give false evidence on him.
Sibiya‚ however‚ denied that such a conspiracy existed.
He claimed that he was not interested in the national police commissioner title at the time. He was a junior and had not even applied for the position.
He also denied coaching any of the witnesses or having any malice against Mdluli.
- TMG Digital
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