DURBAN - THE quality of investigations into the death of South African goalkeeper Senzo Meyiwa was discussed during a press conference on state capture and concerns that South Africa was possibly heading in the direction of becoming a police state.
The conference was held by the Khulumani Support Group in Pretoria on Monday. The topic was the application of human rights precepts to the emergence of a return to a police state in South Africa.
Meyiwa was gunned down on October 26, 2014, in what was described as a botched robbery in Vosloorus, east of Johannesburg.
Advocate Malesela Daniel Teffo spoke about the emerging evidence in the Meyiwa case, and its links to his own allegedly arbitrary arrest, and the phenomenon of the alleged capture of the SAPS.
Muzikawukhulelwa Sibiya, Bongani Ntanzi, Mthobisi Mncube, Mthokozisi Maphisa and Fisokuhle Ntuli were charged with the murder.
Teffo took a swipe at Police Minister Bheki Cele, who he claimed used Meyiwa’s death to his advantage in his campaign to be appointed minister in 2018. “Once you appoint me I will crack the case,” Cele had apparently said. Since the incident, the docket had passed through the hands of many detectives. There were many conspiracy theories as to what happened, Teffo said.
He alleged the crime scene had been tampered with by those in the house when the murder took place.
“The family thinks the police have made a blunder. The accused before the court were framed, and are scapegoats,” Sifiso Meyiwa, Senzo's brother, claimed.
“When someone wants to do something right those in higher power interfere. The masterminds were not arrested. Those in the house at the time should be brought before the court.”
The case was postponed to next year for further investigation.
Sinqobile Mapisa, the sister of one of the accused, spoke about scapegoating to prevent a private prosecution.
“How can five people shoot one bullet? They have so many witnesses in the case. Where were they when only seven people were in the house? I was doing my own investigation to clear my brother's name and to get justice.”
Speaking of the chaos in the country’s firearms registries, Patricia Mashale, a SAPS clerk, became a whistle-blower on firearm registry mismanagement and weapons smuggling. Her life has been threatened several times.
Blue Print for Free Speech adviser and Cato Manor “hit squad” whistle-blower Ari Danikas advised people to tell their story publicly and internationally.
“The more people know your story the safer you are from retaliation. A captured state will use the system and bully you into submission. They have unlimited taxpayers’ funds. Protect yourself from possible character assassination. The majority of the public is not aware of the crucial value of the whistle-blower’s contribution towards fighting corruption and reporting wrongdoing.”
The national director of Khulumani, Dr Marjorie Jobson, said the country needed a reappraisal of the problems in the police service, the equivalent of the Zondo Commission.
Deputy director of the Centre for Human rights, Lloyd Kuveya, said the idea behind the conference was to see the creation of a professionalised police service. Kuveya said issues of corruption, abuse of power and incompetence had been highlighted in the conference.
“Hopefully, these issues can be looked into and addressed so that the people of South Africa will be afforded the opportunity to have an accountable police service, justice and accountability when crimes are committed. Investigations must be done in a professional way.”
Daily News