[imagesource: Flickr / GovernmentZA]

Like most sane South Africans, I have an intense dislike for our Minister of Police.

Bheki Cele is a total and utter cretin who thinks the job of the country’s top cop is to appear at crime scene after crime scene, offering nothing of substance before zooming off to the next photo op.

Worse still, like so many of our ministers, the stench of corruption and dodgy dealings follows him wherever he goes. It’s well known that Public Protector Thuli Madonsela found Cele guilty of improper conduct and maladministration, and then-president Jacob Zuma was forced to fire him in June 2012 after a judge found Cele dishonest and unfit to hold office.

When Zuma fires you for being unfit to hold office, you know you’re in the dwang.

That’s really just the tip of the iceberg and Jacques Pauw, in the recently released Our Poisoned Land: Living in the Shadows of Zuma’s Keepers, has gone a step further and outlined the extent of the relationship between Cele and convicted drug dealer Timmy Marimuthu.

City Press revealed more in a book extract published earlier this week:

Following Jacob Zuma’s sacking of his police commissioner, Bheki Cele found himself in the financial and political wilderness. Recently married and a father of five, Cele needed a benefactor to sustain his lavish lifestyle. Cele reportedly told people in private that, when he was down and out, Marimuthu was the only one who put food on his table.

The convicted drug dealer allegedly diverted a portion of his fees that he earned as an informer from Crime Intelligence for Cele’s benefit.

That kindness from Marimuthu wasn’t just out of the goodness of his heart. Several witnesses testified during the State Capture Commission that Cele had previously awarded large contracts to Marimuthu, making him very wealthy in the process.

In 2019, newly appointed Crime Intelligence boss Peter Jacobs told Marimuthu that it was time he earned that informant commission. This wasn’t well received by the convicted drug dealer, who flew to Cape Town from Durban to meet with Cele:

[A secret Crime Intelligence repport] mentioned that “one person that stood out according to the contract was Minister Bheki Cele” and that Marimuthu ordered that he be cooked a “special mutton curry”.

The note added: “Timmy claims to have Bheki Cele in his back pocket and the minister is always at his beck and call.”

Recordings in the past, which neither party deny the authenticity of, show Marimuthu giving Cele advice on drug operations in KwaZulu-Natal and telling him which cops should be sidelined and which tenders should be investigated.

Cele has never legally cleared his name, despite publicly claiming he has, and the docket containing evidence against him has been emptied over the years.

Subpoenaed phone records have never been analysed and bank statements have disappeared.

This is the Minister of Police, in a country besieged by crime, with hands dirtier than Keith Kirsten. Apologies to our younger readers – Kirsten is a South African gardening guru who used to appear regularly on TV.

Speaking at a book launch in Jozi yesterday, Pauw said it’s time for heads to roll, reports The Citizen:

“With the book, you ask yourself every day; is [Police Minister] Bheki Cele, who is a major character in this book, going to survive?”

“You even get to a point where you don’t want Bheki Cele to get fired because it’s going to mess up your book,” Pauw said.

I’m willing to sacrifice your book, Jacques.

Who takes over, though? We probably end up circling back to Fikile Mbalula and the circus continues.

Unsurprisingly for a book titled Our Poisoned Land, Pauw said it’s not an uplifting read:

“You know I did not set out to write such a negative book. It’s not a book that’s full of hope. I mean, people have asked me what needs to be done now for us to recover and I’m not sure.”

Voting out the ANC would be a pretty good place to start.

It’s a Friday, allow us to dream a little.

Meanwhile, Cele has landed himself in hot water again after telling Western Cape cops, “Shoot and kill, then later ask who started the war.”

[sources:citypress&citizen]