In a remarkable display of apparent amnesia before the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry, former Ekurhuleni City Manager Dr. Imogen Mashazi claimed she could not remember whether she took any action against a senior official accused of orchestrating 55 illegal and irregular appointments in the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD).
The testimony left both commissioners and evidence leaders visibly taken aback, as the inquiry grapples with systemic governance failures in a department commanding a R60 billion budget. The official in question, Julius Mkhwanazi, was at the time—and remains—the Deputy Chief of the EMPD, allegedly carrying out these appointments directly under the nose of the then-Police Chief, Isaac Mapiyeye, who himself faces separate, serious allegations including rape and corruption.
The 55 appointments, previously flagged as invalid by forensic investigators, represent a critical thread in the commission’s examination of how patronage, corruption, and a collapse of oversight infiltrated the metro’s police service. Evidence leaders had painstakingly laid out documentation showing that Mkhwanazi authorized the appointments, bypassing standard recruitment policies and potentially embedding unqualified or politically connected individuals into the police service.
Yet, when confronted with this evidence and directly asked what disciplinary or corrective measures she, as the city’s top administrator, had instituted, Dr. Mashazi offered a vague and elusive response. She stated she could not recall if any specific action was taken, suggesting the matter may have been handled through general administrative channels or internal processes she could no longer remember.
This claim of absentmindedness regarding a major staffing scandal in a critical department struck commissioners as implausible, given the gravity of the irregularities and her role as the ultimate administrative authority. One commissioner pointedly noted that the City Manager’s office is the final bulwark against such operational abuses, and a failure to act—or to remember acting—speaks to a profound leadership vacuum.
The moment is particularly significant as it directly follows Mkhwanazi’s own suspension, which Mashazi had previously defended in a controversial letter. Her inability to now recall her own actions regarding his conduct creates a jarring contradiction and raises questions about the consistency and sincerity of her administrative oversight.
Legal analysts observing the proceedings suggest that “I cannot recall” is a perilous strategy in a judicial inquiry, often interpreted as evasion or a tacit admission of neglect. The commission is tasked not only with uncovering facts but also with assessing the conduct and competence of senior officials. Mashazi’s testimony, rather than clarifying her role, has deepened the mystery of how such blatant irregularities could occur without decisive intervention from the city’s highest office.
The commission has adjourned, with evidence leaders expected to recall Mashazi or present further documentation to jog her memory, as the search for accountability in one of South Africa’s largest metropolitan police services continues.
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