Bheki Cele Insists Malema Was in Cahoots With Khehla Sitole to Have Him Axed: "What a Joke"

• Police Minister Bheki Cele dropped a bombshell during his debate speech in response to the 2022 State of the Nation Address (SONA)
• Cele revealed at the joint sitting that EFF leader Julius Malema and National Police Commissioner Khehla Sitole attempted to plan his removal
• A certain section of South Africans bashed Cele as they backed the apparent plan that had formed against him, citing he'd failed in his role

CAPE TOWN - Minister of Police Bheki Cele has spoken out against an alleged plan to have him removed from his position. He made the revelations during the first leg of the 2022 State of the Nation (SONA) debate at the Cape Town City Hall on Monday.

Taking to the podium, Cele, who has been under the pump from ordinary citizens for some time, pointed an accusing finger at Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema and national police commissioner Khehla Sitole for attempting to hatch a plot to see him vacate from his role.

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Several opposition speakers, including Malema, found it glaring that Cele was still the Police Minister following the conclusions of the report into the July unrest and the picture it paints against him.

Elaborating on his claims ahead of giving the speech he prepared for the address, Cele told the joint sitting of the National Assembly (NA) and the National Council of Provinces (NCOP) that Malema and Sitole met in Tshwane on 10 December 2020.

Cele should not have been appointed

Cele claims that during this encounter, Malema and Sitole hatched a plan to have him ousted, although it was unclear what the turnaround for this materialise would be, News24 reported.

"It does not surprise me, if at all, that he [Malema] arrives here and reshuffles an imaginary cabinet. The Honourable Malema will have to wait, win an election, have a cabinet and appoint ministers to it," he added.

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IOL reported that Malema maintained that Cele should not have been appointed minister, having served as police commissioner a few years earlier. Last year, Ramaphosa appointed a special task team to investigate what sparked the July riots.

Since then, the Presidency released the panel's report. The reasons for the security cluster's failure to deal with the public violence and widespread looting are elaborate. In some parts, the report stated the South African Police Service (SAPS) did not possess any reliable intel to plan operations.

South Africans berate Cele

Locals on social media shared their two cents' worth on Cele's bombshell. Many were critical of the minister, agreeing that he ought to give up his position as minister.

@Darryl Maze wrote:

"Lol, what joke. Cele should become a comedian. Funny when these useless ministers feel they are going to be relieved of their position they think others are hatching plans against them. Just admit you, you have been by far the most useless police minister besides Mbalula. The whole of SA wants you gone."

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@Vinesh Devchander said:

"Wooooh. Your dereliction of duty is what is the basis of the call for your removal. Don't credit Juju for that, you are being too generous. Credit yourself!!!"

@Sibusiso Mthombheni added:

"After getting fired as the police commissioner for corruption, Cele is very lucky that his party embraces criminality or else he should've never been in a position to hold public office ever again."

Cele praises seizure of over 250 guns

Elsewhere, Briefly News previously reported that Cele felt encouraged as he announced the seizure of more than a quarter of a thousand weapons connected to a spate of political killings in KwaZulu-Natal in the past several years.

Speaking on intelligence-driven operations by SAPS in Durban on Wednesday, 2 February, Cele said more than 250 firearms and 289 people have been arrested since 2018 as the police work to combat politically-motivated killings in the province.

"In this time, a task team has combed through [at least] 258 dockets, translating to a total of 289 arrests so far. Compared to the year before, this was 32 dockets more," said Cele, citing the African National Congress (ANC) and the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) had the highest prevalence for political killings.

Source: Briefly News