Ramaphosa Approved Disbandment of Political Killings Task Team, Says Suspended Police Minister Senzo Mchunu
Johannesburg, South Africa – October 18, 2025
Suspended Police Minister Senzo Mchunu has told Parliament’s ad hoc committee that President Cyril Ramaphosa was fully briefed and agreed to the controversial disbandment of the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT), a move that has since sparked fierce political debate and raised questions about government accountability.
Testifying before the committee on Friday, Mchunu said the PKTT was never a permanent structure within the South African Police Service (SAPS) but rather a temporary intervention team meant to tackle politically motivated killings in KwaZulu-Natal and other provinces.
“The Political Killings Task Team was a temporary structure. It had served its purpose, but over time it became dysfunctional,” Mchunu told MPs. “I briefed President Ramaphosa about my decision to disband it, and he agreed with my assessment.”
According to Mchunu, the decision to dissolve the unit was part of a broader plan to refocus policing efforts on national crime prevention and improve coordination within SAPS’s permanent divisions.
However, the decision has been met with backlash from opposition parties and some members within government who argue that the task team’s closure could undermine investigations into high-profile political assassinations, particularly in KwaZulu-Natal, where intra-party killings remain rampant.
Earlier, National Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola suggested that President Ramaphosa had not supported the disbandment, deepening the controversy and raising questions about whether due consultation took place.
Mchunu pushed back against that claim, insisting that his communication with the Presidency was clear and properly documented.
“There was no misunderstanding. I briefed the President, and he concurred. Any suggestion to the contrary is inaccurate,” he said.
The Political Killings Task Team was originally established to investigate a surge in political assassinations linked to intra-party disputes, especially in the ANC strongholds of KwaZulu-Natal. Its investigations led to several arrests over the years, though critics have accused it of being under-resourced and politically constrained.
Mchunu’s testimony adds a new twist to the ongoing saga, as Parliament continues to probe his suspension and the legality of his decisions while in office.
He is expected to return to Parliament on Tuesday to face further questioning from Members of Parliament, who have demanded clarity on the sequence of events leading to the task team’s disbandment and the President’s exact role in the matter.
