Police Minister Bheki Cele Greenlights Presidential Inauguration, SA Ready to See Him Go

• Outgoing Police Minister Bheki Cele has given law enforcement preparedness for the presidential inauguration a thumbs-up
• Re-elected President Ramaphosa will be sworn in as the head of state at the Union Buildings on 19 June 2024
• Cele emphasised the inauguration ceremony will go ahead as planned with no interruptions expected

JOHANNESBURG — All roads lead to the Union Buildings for the presidential inauguration on Wednesday.

Police Minister Bheki Cele has emphasised the state of readiness for the ceremony of President Cyril Ramaphosa, who resumes a second term in office, taking place at the seat of government.

Initial doubt about political events

Cele said in a SABC News report:

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“The job of the police is to mitigate and ensure that threats don’t happen. Many South Africans thought things would not happen accordingly on the day of such a historical [occasion]."

Cele said some events had threatened to halt the elections, the results announcement and the seventh Parliament's first sitting.

"All those things happened according to plan. This one will also happen as planned.”

Cele ready to hang up his hat

Briefly News reported recently that Cele announced he intended to step down as Police Minister and focus on family time.

The revelation follows the national and provincial elections in which his party, the African National Congress (ANC), failed to win a majority share of the vote.

Cele has been Police Minister since February 2018 but will not be returning to Parliament alongside other ANC members of parliament, SABC News reported.

They include Defence Minister Thandi Modise, International Relations Minister Dr Naledi Pandor, and Social Development Minister Lindiwe Zulu.

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Given the ANC’s reduced vote share, the four ministers did not crack the nod for Parliamentary seats.

Cele said, explaining what the new chapter holds:

“An ending has come, and there is a new beginning. I left home to work. So, if there's no work, I'll go home and reflect on how to proceed. I'm grateful to South Africa, particularly my organisation, the ANC, for giving me the opportunity."

South Africans keen for end of Cele reign

Some netizens expressed eagerness to see Cele, whose tenure has been dogged by public criticism for his apparent ineptitude at the helm, finally bid the ministry adieu.

Briefly News camped in the comments section and collated several interesting posts.

@Thulaganyo_G said:

"We are very ready to refer to Hamilton Cele as former minister."

@42566657PL asked:

"Is he still a minister??"

@Lindy647306 noted:

"He's been a very good minister of Ramaphosa's protection. He can now go to hell."

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No major problems during General Election 2024

In related news, Briefly News reported that about 50 people were arrested for allegedly attempting to disrupt the 2024 General Election.

The police had committed to quell any unrest after the election results were officially released.

Source: Briefly News