Why so eager to protect Zuma?
THERE is a great curiosity in linking the names of Glynnis Breytenbach and Richard Mdluli. Breytenbach is a shining star of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) which seeks to silence her, whatever it takes. Mdluli is a policeman whose real claim to fame is that, as it was put to me recently, “he sure has currency”.
What both share is that they have, at different times, been suspended from their work. Breytenbach is not, currently, under suspension — though she has most recently been accused of being a Mossad (Israeli) spy. She hasn’t been allowed near her previous job leading the Pretoria specialised commercial crime unit. Instead, she sits twiddling thumbs in the office of the director of public prosecutions.
Mdluli continues to be suspended and charges against him, which were withdrawn, were ordered reinstated in a damning judgment by Judge John Murphy. It will undoubtedly lead to an appeal and endless wrangling through the judicial system.
The curiosity in all this is that while the NPA is desperate to put the strongest, most sound-proofed lid on Breytenbach, other parties, unnamed but presumably close to President Jacob Zuma, are desperate to return Mdluli to his job as divisional commissioner of the South African Police Service’s crime intelligence division, a position he first occupied in July 2009.
This is where that crack about “currency” comes from. As I’ve heard it, Mdluli has the drop on everyone who matters. That includes, presumably, the president himself. Putting him back in charge of one of the most intrusively sensitive jobs in SA ahead of next year’s general election is clearly the issue that generates most electricity in those rarefied ruling circles.
At the same time, there’s no point putting him back in the job if Breytenbach’s on the loose. Everyone knows Breytenbach has Mdluli in her sights. She wants him in court to explain allegations relating to the abuse of the police covert fund — in other words, fraud. And anyway, the latest court ruling has put a temporary stop to Mdluli’s return.
The key to this puzzle is the president. Many people go to extraordinary lengths to protect him. Why? Or do we all already know?