The SAPS joke that is..

"Out of this capital expenditure of R98 Million, R81 Million was blasted on vehicles. The sad part is that they spent R35 Million in the first quarter. This is evident that they just wanted to spend the money."

This comes from a secret report, due to be handed to the Joint Committee on Intelligence. The report alleges that acting national police commissioner, Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi (pictured below), authorized the use of funds from the Secret Services Account, for use on operational expenditure- despite this being in direct contravention of the Secret Services Act. Apparently ever so clever move, was to spend the unspent portion of the budget- even though, this was not what the budget was intended for. The decline in the spending of the Crime Intelligence has been put down to infighting within the South African police Services.

To place this whole debacle into perspective- Jackie Selebi (pictured right), former SAPS and Interpol head, is now serving a jail sentence (in hospital like most connected people), his replacement, Bheki Cele (pictured in all his pimp looking glory below), is due to be fired due to fraud relating to lease agreements, Ex Crime Intelligence boss, Richard Mdluli is in and hot of hot water relating to fraud, murder etc (see previous posts) and now current cop boss, Lt Gen Mkhwanazi is being fingered in fraud. 

What makes this expenditure worse, is the funds went to purchase luxury cars, like Mercedes Benz ML 350 CDI, Jeep Grand Cherokee, Lexus 350  RXI..to name a few. Having said this, many police stations country wide, sit without patrol vehicles to respond to emergencies, have no electricity or running water, lack of stationary, no fund to purchase Bullet proof vests...the list of vital needs is endless. Yet, Our Lt Gen Genius, blows the money on luxury cars. 

The big spender, has been called to appear before Parliaments Police Oversight Committee, next week, to explain the Richard Mdluli )pictured below) saga. (The on and off and then on and then off and on again suspension..then the SAP saying they will fight for the apparent fraudster and former Crime Intelligence Boss). 

Mkhwanazi must be given the boot as well. 

But then, you ask, what do the SAPS (and other Civil Servants) do when on suspension. They continue to draw their inflated salaries of course. In Mduli's case (and after being stripped of all police power) he pockets R1 Million a year. Cele draws around R1,3 Million. How great is that!

The whole mismanagement issue, in my view, stems from police chiefs being political appointments and not career police persons. They are appointed to protect the interests of whoever is the most powerful group in parliament, so that they are protected due to the many skeletons, dancing in their collective cupboards of the current ruling party. The matters of crime and citizens is often an afterthought. 

Until they choose a policemen/woman, who is a career police person, and not a politician, we are going to see this farce being repeated time and time again.