Madlanga Commission finds Dineo Mokwele ‘overqualified’ for SAPS post

The post is at the centre of the criminal case against her, Crime Intelligence head Dumisani Khumalo and five other officers.

The finding emerged after Commissioner Sandile Khumalo took IDAC head Andrea Johnson through Mokwele's curriculum vitae, qualifications and supporting documents during her testimony before the commission on Thursday.

The six officials were arrested by the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (IDAC), which alleges they misrepresented Mokwele's qualifications during the recruitment process in an attempt to capture crime intelligence.

The investigation that led to the arrest was triggered by a complaint lodged by National Coloured Congress MP Fadiel Adams, who alleged that Mokwele's appointment as a Crime Intelligence brigadier formed part of an attempt to capture the Crime Intelligence division.

The commission's examination of the documents, however, found that Mokwele held qualifications that exceeded the minimum requirements advertised for the post.

Khumalo took Johnson through the job advertisement before comparing it with Mokwele's qualifications, which included an industrial engineering degree and around 12 additional certificates in fields ranging from cyber security to finance and public service administration.

During the exchange, Johnson acknowledged that she was unfamiliar with all of Mokwele's qualifications.

"I don't know all her qualifications, no." She said.

Khumalo challenged Johnson on how she could have stated under oath that Mokwele was unsuitable for the position without first establishing what qualifications she held.

"So why do you make a statement under oath to say she's not suitable for this position if you don't know what her qualifications are?"

As the commissioner worked through Mokwele's qualifications, he said the documents before the commission painted a vastly different picture from the one created by IDAC's investigation.

"Before I saw these files, the picture painted in my head was that Crime Intelligence appointed a receptionist from BMW. That's the picture I had in my head. Until I saw these files, then it became clear to me that this person is not just qualified, but her qualification exceeds the requirements."

Khumalo noted that Mokwele possessed qualifications that met and exceeded the requirements for the post, including engineering qualifications specifically listed in the job advertisement.

He then asked Johnson whether she still stood by the statement in paragraph 25.1 of her affidavit that Mokwele lacked the required qualifications.

Johnson conceded that the statement was incorrect.

"In terms of the documents that I now have sight of, that is incorrect."

The commissioner also questioned IDAC's assertion that Mokwele required seven years' senior management experience to qualify for the position.

Referring to the original job advertisement, Khumalo pointed out that it required only "appropriate management experience" and not seven years in senior management.

He further questioned the basis on which Mokwele had been subjected to criminal proceedings.

"That is the basis for IDAC targeting this female person and subjecting her to criminal proceedings and humiliation."

The questioning continued as Khumalo established that Johnson had not reviewed Mokwele's job application before recommending that she face fraud and corruption charges.

When asked whether she had seen Mokwele's application for the post, Johnson replied: "No."

Khumalo responded: "Now, if you have not seen her application for this job, how can you make a recommendation as you did in your prosecution memo that she must be charged with fraud and this many other things? What fraud has she committed?"

Johnson told the commission she had relied on information provided by her investigation team.

"I relied on the briefing from my team... I now see that the facts as I may have received them then... were incorrect."

Later in the proceedings, Johnson withdrew her earlier description of Mokwele's appointment as a "token appointment" after Khumalo described the characterisation as unfair and insulting.

"I would have to go further than withdraw. I would have to apologise that that statement was made... I accept, having gone through this file, that the word 'token' is wholly inappropriate."

READ MORE