Evidence leader advocate Mahlape Sello has argued that suspended Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department deputy chief Julius Mkhwanazi should be held in contempt of the Madlanga commission of inquiry on the basis he misrepresented facts for a postponement of his testimony.
Sello told the commission that Mkhwanazi sought a delay in March on the basis that his mother had died, but Home Affairs records later showed that the deceased was not his biological mother.
“It was upon receipt of the documents from Home Affairs that we concluded that he knew the lady who had passed away was not his mother. He misrepresented that fact, and he obtained his extension,” Sello said.
Sello said Mkhwanazi should be held in contempt for deliberately misleading the inquiry.
She further pointed to the death certificate, which indicated that the deceased was only 10 years older than Mkhwanazi.
Mkhwanazi rejected the allegation that he misled the commission. He said the woman who died was his stepmother and had raised him from the age of seven and that in his cultural understanding she was his mother. “I’m still saying that she’s my mother… she raised me.”
He maintained that there was confusion over terminology rather than any intention to deceive and argued that the commission should have sought clarification at the time.
Mkhwanazi also said he was “hurt” that his family records were discussed publicly, describing them as “not for public consumption”.
Commission chairperson Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga apologised for the manner in which the issue was raised and acknowledged that Mkhwanazi had been taken by surprise. He allowed Mkhwanazi to file a supplementary affidavit within two days after completing his testimony to address the discrepancies.
Sello’s questioning extended beyond the postponement and focused on broader inconsistencies in Mkhwanazi’s evidence and documentation.
She challenged conflicting Home Affairs records listing individuals identified as his parents, while Mkhwanazi testified that those individuals were in fact his grandparents. She also raised concerns about official documents, including a Home Affairs letter and an immunisation record, which reflected only one child, creating uncertainty about the completeness of the records.
Mkhwanazi responded that a funeral programme he had previously submitted listed all seven children in the family and undertook to provide a copy to the commission.
Meanwhile, further confusion arose over the evolution of his witness statements. Mkhwanazi confirmed that his initial statement in December 2025 included 15 annexures, but that he later submitted an amended version with 61 annexures, which he described as corrections to wording that did not accurately reflect his position.
A separate supplementary statement, running to six pages with five annexures, was also presented to the commission but remained unsigned at the time of the hearing. Mkhwanazi said he would sign and date it during an adjournment.
Mkhwanazi’s testimony is expected to continue, with the commission yet to determine whether contempt proceedings will follow.
Business Day
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