Outgoing National Police Commissioner General Khehla Sitole has accused some people within the South African Police Service (SAPS) of leaking false information about him to the media.
Sitole says his appointment as head of police in 2017 came as a surprise to many, as little was known about him before then.
His tenure has been marred by a damning high court judgment in January last year, which found that Sitole had breached his duty as top cop regarding the procurement of the spy grabber technology prior to the African National Congress (ANC)’s 2017 Nasrec conference.
General Sitole says it is not surprising that then Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) head Robert McBride was the one who investigated the case because he was eyeing the top cop position.
“He [McBride] says he was called and in that meeting, they said where does this Sitole come from, what is it that we can do in order to make sure that we remove him from the position. We managed to deal with [former acting national police commissioner Khomotso] Phahlane, he is gone now, and now it is Sitole. Then came the formulation of this information around the purchase of a grabber,” explains the outgoing National Police Commissioner.
The below video is an exclusive interview with General Khehla Sitole:
Ramaphosa terminates Sitole’s employment contract
In February, President Cyril Ramaphosa terminated the employment contract of the Sitole with effect from 31 March 2022.
According to a statement from the presidency, President Ramaphosa and General Sitole agreed that the early termination of the commissioner’s contract is in the best interests of the country.
An announcement is expected to be made on filling the position of SAPS National Commissioner.
Ramaphosa terminates Sitole’s employment contract:
