'Golden handshakes unacceptable'
AT LEAST 19 top police officers were paid a total of R31-million over the past two years to sit at home.
Those who received payments included top cops who had had running battles with police commissioner General Bheki Cele. This after Cele’s failed attempt to invoke section 35 of the Police Act, through which officers are transferred to new areas of responsibility.
The payments included R2-million to former deputy national commissioner Hamilton Hlela. Last year the police said Hlela had resigned for “personal reasons”, even though he was being probed then over allegations that he had a relationship with Midway Two, who allegedly won a R55-million tender to build two police stations. The costs apparently skyrocketed to more than R130-million.
Revelations about the R31-million payout emerged yesterday when MPs sitting on Parliament’s police portfolio committee sought answers from SAPS management about the golden handshake of R3.5-million plus extra years of pension benefits paid to Joey Mabasa.
He was being investigated for alleged links in the murder of strip club owner Lolly Jackson and alleged association with fugitive Radovan Krejcir. No evidence could be found and an attempt to discipline him apparently failed.
SAPS deputy national commissioner of human resources, Magda Stander, first claimed that the media reports about the R3.5-million were wrong. But she then conceded that Mabasa had been paid “his actual benefits” of R1.097-million, plus R1.137-million in pension benefits – and would get five years extra pension benefits. But MPs accused Cele of using restructuring the SAPS to “get rid of” Mabasa – at great cost.
This after Stander revealed that they temporarily transferred Mabasa, and then did away with his original job so that they couldn’t transfer him back.
Stander first claimed that because his post had been made redundant, they had no option but to pay him out. But then she admitted that they could have transferred him to another post but “felt it was in the best interests of the organisation that we terminate his services”.
They were able to do this under section 35 of the Act, which allows Cele to discharge any member whose post is abolished, or where this would promote the efficiency and economy of the SAPS.
When MPs said SAPS could have fired Mabasa without paying a golden handshake, Stander said: “Internally we tried to institute disciplinary steps against Mabasa, but we could not find tangible evidence. The termination and the criminal investigation are two separate issues.”
The committee refused to accept Mabasa’s payout, saying that if SAPS continued with the lucrative termination packages they would consider not approving their budget allocation next year.
Committee chair, Sindi Chikunga of the ANC, said: “I am paying half my salary to SARS but not for this. I can never pay a person who is sitting at home … who by rights should be disciplined, should be fired.”
Dianne Kohler Barnard of the DA said she would ask the auditor-general to investigate whether it was legal to use section 35 “as a back door” for SAPS members under criminal investigation to leave the service with severance pay and monthly pension payouts.
Meanwhile, MPs also questioned why corrupt border police were not removed, and why many station commanders were not communicating with crime intelligence. In response, Cele said the SAPS was 100 years old and change happened slowly.
He asked whether any other national police commissioner had ever been “grilled” by Parliament like he had.
Cope MP Mluleki George told him: “It has nothing to do with history. You are in charge now.”
As usual, the police refused to provide detailed information about what the crime intelligence services had spent their R1.95-billion budget on last year.
They would only say R19.9-million was spent on cars, R59.6-million on fuel, R29.1-million on maintenance of the vehicles and R29.6-million on telecommunications.
Cele has refused to confirm or deny that he has been fired from his job.
President Jacob Zuma’s spokesman Mac Maharaj denied media reports on Sunday that Cele had been axed and would be appointed as the ambassador to Canada.
Cops paid R31m to sit at home
'Golden handshakes unacceptable'
AT LEAST 19 top police officers were paid a total of R31-million over the past two years to sit at home.
Those who received payments included top cops who had had running battles with police commissioner General Bheki Cele. This after Cele’s failed attempt to invoke section 35 of the Police Act, through which officers are transferred to new areas of responsibility.
The payments included R2-million to former deputy national commissioner Hamilton Hlela. Last year the police said Hlela had resigned for “personal reasons”, even though he was being probed then over allegations that he had a relationship with Midway Two, who allegedly won a R55-million tender to build two police stations. The costs apparently skyrocketed to more than R130-million.
Revelations about the R31-million payout emerged yesterday when MPs sitting on Parliament’s police portfolio committee sought answers from SAPS management about the golden handshake of R3.5-million plus extra years of pension benefits paid to Joey Mabasa.
He was being investigated for alleged links in the murder of strip club owner Lolly Jackson and alleged association with fugitive Radovan Krejcir. No evidence could be found and an attempt to discipline him apparently failed.
SAPS deputy national commissioner of human resources, Magda Stander, first claimed that the media reports about the R3.5-million were wrong. But she then conceded that Mabasa had been paid “his actual benefits” of R1.097-million, plus R1.137-million in pension benefits – and would get five years extra pension benefits. But MPs accused Cele of using restructuring the SAPS to “get rid of” Mabasa – at great cost.
This after Stander revealed that they temporarily transferred Mabasa, and then did away with his original job so that they couldn’t transfer him back.
Stander first claimed that because his post had been made redundant, they had no option but to pay him out. But then she admitted that they could have transferred him to another post but “felt it was in the best interests of the organisation that we terminate his services”.
They were able to do this under section 35 of the Act, which allows Cele to discharge any member whose post is abolished, or where this would promote the efficiency and economy of the SAPS.
When MPs said SAPS could have fired Mabasa without paying a golden handshake, Stander said: “Internally we tried to institute disciplinary steps against Mabasa, but we could not find tangible evidence. The termination and the criminal investigation are two separate issues.”
The committee refused to accept Mabasa’s payout, saying that if SAPS continued with the lucrative termination packages they would consider not approving their budget allocation next year.
Committee chair, Sindi Chikunga of the ANC, said: “I am paying half my salary to SARS but not for this. I can never pay a person who is sitting at home … who by rights should be disciplined, should be fired.”
Dianne Kohler Barnard of the DA said she would ask the auditor-general to investigate whether it was legal to use section 35 “as a back door” for SAPS members under criminal investigation to leave the service with severance pay and monthly pension payouts.
Meanwhile, MPs also questioned why corrupt border police were not removed, and why many station commanders were not communicating with crime intelligence. In response, Cele said the SAPS was 100 years old and change happened slowly.
He asked whether any other national police commissioner had ever been “grilled” by Parliament like he had.
Cope MP Mluleki George told him: “It has nothing to do with history. You are in charge now.”
As usual, the police refused to provide detailed information about what the crime intelligence services had spent their R1.95-billion budget on last year.
They would only say R19.9-million was spent on cars, R59.6-million on fuel, R29.1-million on maintenance of the vehicles and R29.6-million on telecommunications.
Cele has refused to confirm or deny that he has been fired from his job.
President Jacob Zuma’s spokesman Mac Maharaj denied media reports on Sunday that Cele had been axed and would be appointed as the ambassador to Canada.
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