Charges dropped, but Masemola stays suspended as MK Party demands Ramaphosa act

The MK Party has called on President Cyril Ramaphosa to lift the suspension of National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola, saying there is no lawful or rational basis for keeping him out of office now that the criminal charges against him have been withdrawn.

The charges were withdrawn on Tuesday after the National Prosecuting Authority concluded there was insufficient evidence to proceed with the prosecution. As IOL reported on 24 September, MK Party spokesperson Sifiso Mahlangu said Ramaphosa should terminate the suspension as soon as practically possible, preferably within the next 24 hours.

“The criminal proceedings against General Masemola have collapsed, all charges have been formally withdrawn and no lawful or rational basis remains for keeping him outside his office,” Mahlangu said.

The party rejected the NPA’s explanation for the prosecution, describing it as frivolous, vexatious and malicious, and alleging that it gave Ramaphosa a pretext to suspend the country’s top police officer. It also pointed to evidence before the Madlanga Commission, saying that record established Masemola acted within about two weeks and used the time to complete consultations before making his decision.

MK further questioned the conduct of the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption, referring to the resignation of former IDAC head Andrea Johnson and the suspension of IDAC investigators. The party said the circumstances around the prosecution had been referred for judicial scrutiny following evidence before the Madlanga Commission.

The party also asked why Masemola remained suspended while Ramaphosa was recovering from illness. It referred to the Presidency’s announcement on September 16 that Ramaphosa had been booked off public engagements and instructed to rest, and pointed to his appearance at the ANC Veterans’ League Presidential Fundraising Golf Day at Country Club Johannesburg on September 21. Mahlangu argued that the president did not need to attend a public event to sign the instrument terminating the suspension.

MK linked the continued suspension to the country’s crime situation, including the killings of women in Ekurhuleni and elsewhere, and to Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia’s call for Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi and Lieutenant General Dumisani Khumalo to assist with the Ekurhuleni investigations.

“The continued suspension of General Masemola is an injustice to him, an insult to the South African Police Service and a reckless obstruction of stable police leadership during a national crime crisis,” Mahlangu said. “Ramaphosa must perform his constitutional duty and restore General Fannie Masemola to office without further delay.”

For ordinary South Africans, the question of who leads the SAPS is not an abstract one. The national commissioner sets operational priorities for a service of roughly 150,000 members, and the post sits at the centre of the state’s response to violent crime, including the gender-based violence cases that have dominated headlines in Ekurhuleni and other parts of Gauteng this year. A prolonged acting arrangement can slow key decisions, from deployments to procurement to the disciplinary chain, at a time when police leadership is under sustained public scrutiny.

The suspension itself is a presidential power. Under the SAPS Act, the president may suspend the national commissioner, and ending that suspension is a decision only Ramaphosa can take. The MK Party’s demand therefore lands squarely at the Union Buildings, not at the NPA or the police service.

What the NPA has not done is explain in public why it took the case to court at all before withdrawing it. The prosecuting authority has said only that the evidence was insufficient. That leaves a set of unanswered questions about the sequence of events, which is part of why the Madlanga Commission’s record has become the reference point for both the party and, potentially, for any future judicial review.

The Presidency has not responded publicly to the MK Party’s call. Until it does, Masemola remains suspended, the SAPS remains under an acting arrangement, and the political pressure on Ramaphosa to act one way or the other continues to build.

Source: IOL, MK Party urges Ramaphosa to end Masemola’s suspension