Mr Speaker, the reinstatement of Richard Mdluli as the crime intelligence head, his subsequent so-called shifting to another department in the SAPS and now, more recently, the reports that he has been given seven days to justify to the National Police Commissioner why he should not be suspended all over again, points to a serious crisis in our criminal justice system.
Richard Mdluli has been accused of a chilling series of criminal acts, including murder, fraud, corruption and nepotism. How is it that the Office of the President did not intervene to prevent his reinstatement in the first place? Did the President believe that Mr Mdluli is a fit and proper person to serve in the higher ranks of the SAPS?
If I heard the President correctly, he is saying, "It is not my fault; it is not my responsibility." But he is the President. What we want to know in this Parliament today is: Is he going to take steps to ensure that Mr Mdluli is resuspended, pending the completion of all the investigations and, if he did not have a role in the reinstatement of Mr Mdluli, is he going to institute a commission of inquiry to establish how the entire saga unfolded? Because, Mr Speaker, there is a legitimate concern that state resources are being used to advance an internal party-political agenda to neutralise the President's opponents, including the hon Tokyo Sexwale, who sits in the ANC's own front benches. This Parliament and the South African people need an assurance that state resources are state resources, not party-political resources. Will the President intervene? [Time expired.] [Applause.]