Testimony before the ad hoc committee probing KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi’s claims of criminal infiltration in the justice system was abruptly halted after police minister Senzo Mchunu’s chief of staff, Cedrick Nkabinde, admitted that dates in his affidavit had been “thumb-sucked”.
Evidence leader Norman Arendse led Nkabinde through his career history, including his suspension from the Independent Police Investigative Directorate and subsequent appointment as Mchunu’s chief of staff in August 2024.
Nkabinde confirmed he had assisted Mchunu in a complaint against the Hawks years earlier but insisted his contact with the minister since then was infrequent and largely social.
The session turned contentious when MPs pressed Nkabinde on contradictions between his affidavit and oral testimony regarding meetings with businessperson Brown Mogotsi and Mchunu.
EFF leader Julius Malema accused him of “deliberately misleading” the committee, while EFF MP Leigh‑Ann Mathys declared the errors amounted to perjury.
“It’s perjury! It’s a lie! He needs to be arrested for lying under oath,” Malema said, citing public records of Mchunu’s September and November engagements.
Nkabinde apologised, saying he lacked access to his devices when consulted by evidence leaders and had been advised to provide approximate dates. He insisted he took ownership of the affidavit but conceded he had not done “thorough homework”.
MK Party MP Sibonelo Nomvalo warned that proceeding under such circumstances would compromise the credibility of the committee’s work.
DA MP Ian Cameron said Nkabinde had not taken the process seriously enough.
ANC chief whip Mdumiseni Ntuli argued the witness had signalled from the outset that he was disadvantaged, and it was sufficient to halt proceedings.
Committee chair Soviet Lekganyane ruled that Nkabinde’s statement was “inexcusable” and that there was “no demonstrable intention by the witness to be truthful”.
He announced that the testimony would be stopped and rescheduled, probably during the committee’s sitting in Pretoria.
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