African National Congress
ANC
ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula praised President Cyril Ramaphosa’s decision to establish the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry, saying it prevented saved South Africa. Speaking at the ANC Provincial General Council, Mbalula said the president’s response to allegations of political interference in policing demonstrated strong leadership.
ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula has hailed President Cyril Ramaphosa’s establishment of the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry as a courageous step towards enhancing transparency and accountability in South Africa.
Mbalula said if Ramaphosa had ignored allegations of political interference in the work of the police, South Africa could have descended into more chaos than the 2021 July unrest.
The Madlanga Commission, currently underway in Pretoria was established by President Cyril Ramaphosa on 23 July 2025 after explosive public allegations by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lt-Gen Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi.
“Comrades, on the 6th of July, we woke up, a police man was addressing the nation, and saying, here are the allegations. Many forces in society wanted to elevate that thing to a form of revolt against the democratic statelike it happened during the Jacob Zuma unrest. Then they said they do not know why Zuma was arrested. They brought the country down. More than 400 people died. When General Mkhwanazi addressed the nation. Crime affects you, where you live in your household. If the President of the country were to treat that matter anyhow, this country was going to turn into flames,” Mbalula told members of the ANC in Mpumalanga.
Mbalula, who was speaking at the ANC Mpumalanga provincial general council (PGC) held at the Mbombela Stadium on Saturday, added that the Madlanga commission has the backing of the ANC, despite criticism that previous commissions of inquiry had produced few results.
“We knew as the ANC that counter revolutionaries around us and opportunists would make this thing bigger than the unrest when Jacob Zuma was justifiably so, arrested. The terms of reference of the commission of inquiry are very clear. If you are subpoenaed and you do not appear, you will be arrested and sent to jail for a limited period…Many people will say, Why didn’t the president just act? Why did he have to establish a commission? Now I want to explain why,” he said.
Mbalula emphasised that the decision by President Cyril Ramaphosa showed that he has nothing to hide.
“The president decided in his own wisdom, legally guided, and as the ANC, we supported that because the matter Mkhwanazi was raising was important
He had warned that South Africa could have descend into chaos if President Cyril Ramaphosa did not take decisive action in response to allegations made by KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) police commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi,” he added.
