ActionSA notes the contradictory accounts between Parliamentary testimony and the Gauteng Provincial Government’s continued defence of its Crime Prevention Wardens (Amapanyaza). These inconsistencies confirm what ActionSA has been warning about since 2023 – that this programme was launched without legal authority, proper vetting, or accountability.
According to public reports, KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi told Parliament’s ad hoc committee on police corruption:
“I raised that in the [police] BOC … and I said this is illegal. It is against the law; the premier must be advised.” He further testified that SAPS legal services later supported his view that Amapanyaza were illegal, yet training and deployment continued, and the unit “could not be incorporated into the Police Act.”
In contrast, the Gauteng Provincial Government now claims that the Wardens were later designated as Peace Officers under Section 334 of the Criminal Procedure Act, following a 2023 decision by Minister of Justice Ronald Lamola. However, that intervention occurred months after their deployment, revealing a critical gap between their establishment and any subsequent legal designation. At inception, these wardens had no statutory authority, no SAPS accreditation, and no legislative framework. Designation after the fact cannot retroactively legitimise what was unlawful from the start.
Since the beginning of this term, the Community Safety portfolio has been located within Premier Lesufi’s Office, making him directly accountable for this programme’s design, funding, and oversight.
As such, this matter represents not only a policing irregularity but a failure of executive governance at the very centre of provincial power.
ActionSA has consistently raised these concerns since 2023 – both inside the Gauteng Legislature and through formal correspondence with the Special Investigating Unit (SIU). We have issued multiple public statements, submitted oversight questions, and warned of legal and financial risks long before this week’s testimony. General Mkhwanazi’s remarks before Parliament therefore do not reveal anything new; they vindicate ActionSA’s consistent position that Premier Lesufi’s Crime Prevention Wardens were conceived and implemented outside the law.
See our earlier statements:
- ActionSA Writes to SIU to Probe Premier Lesufi’s Crime Wardens Scheme (Read Here)
- ActionSA Condemns Racially Insensitive Remarks but Reiterates Illegality of Amapanyaza Programme (Read Here)
Now that a senior SAPS Commissioner has confirmed under oath what ActionSA has long alleged, the Gauteng Legislature must act. The time for warnings has passed — the time for accountability has come.
ActionSA will now use every available legislative mechanism to persuade the Gauteng Provincial Legislature and fellow legislators to act decisively. The evidence presented by General Mkhwanazi demands more than media statements – it requires institutional accountability.
Accordingly, we will pursue:
- An independent legal and safety review into the establishment and operations of the Gauteng Crime Prevention Wardens — to determine both their lawfulness and their effectiveness in keeping communities safe;
- Full public disclosure of all legal advice, ministerial decisions, and correspondence relied upon by the Premier’s Office — so that residents can see for themselves whether this scheme was ever legal; and
- A formal inquiry by the Gauteng Provincial Legislature, through relevant Oversight Committees, to expose any misuse of funds, irregular appointments, or political interference in the recruitment and training of these wardens – and to ensure taxpayers’ money serves public safety, not political interests.
ActionSA remains steadfast in our belief that good intentions can never justify unlawful governance. The rule of law must apply equally to the Premier’s Office as it does to every citizen. Gauteng’s residents deserve real safety – not political projects operating in legal shadows
ActionSA Vindicated as Mkhwanazi Testimony Confirms Illegality of Lesufi’s Crime Prevention Wardens
ActionSA notes the contradictory accounts between Parliamentary testimony and the Gauteng Provincial Government’s continued defence of its Crime Prevention Wardens (Amapanyaza). These inconsistencies confirm what ActionSA has been warning about since 2023 – that this programme was launched without legal authority, proper vetting, or accountability.
According to public reports, KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi told Parliament’s ad hoc committee on police corruption:
“I raised that in the [police] BOC … and I said this is illegal. It is against the law; the premier must be advised.” He further testified that SAPS legal services later supported his view that Amapanyaza were illegal, yet training and deployment continued, and the unit “could not be incorporated into the Police Act.”
In contrast, the Gauteng Provincial Government now claims that the Wardens were later designated as Peace Officers under Section 334 of the Criminal Procedure Act, following a 2023 decision by Minister of Justice Ronald Lamola. However, that intervention occurred months after their deployment, revealing a critical gap between their establishment and any subsequent legal designation. At inception, these wardens had no statutory authority, no SAPS accreditation, and no legislative framework. Designation after the fact cannot retroactively legitimise what was unlawful from the start.
Since the beginning of this term, the Community Safety portfolio has been located within Premier Lesufi’s Office, making him directly accountable for this programme’s design, funding, and oversight.
As such, this matter represents not only a policing irregularity but a failure of executive governance at the very centre of provincial power.
ActionSA has consistently raised these concerns since 2023 – both inside the Gauteng Legislature and through formal correspondence with the Special Investigating Unit (SIU). We have issued multiple public statements, submitted oversight questions, and warned of legal and financial risks long before this week’s testimony. General Mkhwanazi’s remarks before Parliament therefore do not reveal anything new; they vindicate ActionSA’s consistent position that Premier Lesufi’s Crime Prevention Wardens were conceived and implemented outside the law.
See our earlier statements:
Now that a senior SAPS Commissioner has confirmed under oath what ActionSA has long alleged, the Gauteng Legislature must act. The time for warnings has passed — the time for accountability has come.
ActionSA will now use every available legislative mechanism to persuade the Gauteng Provincial Legislature and fellow legislators to act decisively. The evidence presented by General Mkhwanazi demands more than media statements – it requires institutional accountability.
Accordingly, we will pursue:
ActionSA remains steadfast in our belief that good intentions can never justify unlawful governance. The rule of law must apply equally to the Premier’s Office as it does to every citizen. Gauteng’s residents deserve real safety – not political projects operating in legal shadows