Verdict on Phiyega's fate due next month

12 July 2016 - 08:57 By Sipho Mabena

Suspended national police boss Riah Phiyega will finally know her fate when the Claassen Board of Inquiry releases its findings next month. The inquiry, chaired by Judge Neels Claassen, is investigating Phiyega's fitness to hold office.It was triggered by the Marikanainquiry, which made adverse findings about the police chief's conduct following the 2012 killing of 34 miners by the police in Marikana, North West. Phiyega has asked the Pretoria High Court to set aside the Farlam Commission's conclusion that the police leadership misled it about how the police implemented their tactical plan on August 16 2012, and concealed that the plan had been hastily implemented without "inputs" from the specialists in dealing with such situations, the public order policing unit.Phiyega argues that the conclusion was "irrational" and was contradicted by evidence. Pressure on Phiyega after axed officers win huge payoutsSuspended police boss Riah Phiyega's woes escalated this week when two senior police officers she illegally fired were awarded multimillion-rand damages following a court settlement.She said in court papers that the police leadership was not identified in the report and there were no facts to support the conclusion.The Claassen inquiry, which was allocated R22-million, will submit its report to President Jacob Zuma, parliament's portfolio committee on the police, and Phiyega by the end of next month...

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