YEAH Right!
Dramat quit ‘at his own request’
April 22 2015 at 07:53am
By Marianne Merten
Johannesburg - Hawks boss Lieutenant-General Anwa Dramat has resigned
following a settlement, national police commissioner General Riah Phiyega told
MPs on Tuesday, subsequently confirming to Independent Media his departure was
“at his own request”.
However, Phiyega declined to give details of the settlement: “The
minister will talk about that. I can confirm it was at his (Dramat’s) request”.
Contacted for commenton Tuesday evening, Dramat said: “I don’t want to comment
at all.”
Dramat’s resignation marks the end of one of several bruising battles in
the top SAPS echelons which not only queried the reasons behind the
suspensions, but also the processes followed. While the head of the Hawks can
be suspended by the minister, removal from office would involve a recommendation
of Parliament.
Suspended in December over the illegal 2010 rendition of at least four
Zimbabweans, the High Court in Pretoria ruled Dramat’s suspension unlawful.
Brought by the Helen Suzman Foundation, it said it had brought the case
in the interest of the rule of law. However, Dramat never returned to his
office – where the locks had been changed in any case.
Speculation has been rife that action against Dramat did not come over
the illegal renditions – a report by the police watchdog, the Independent
Police Investigative Directorate, cleared him, although Ipid boss Robert
McBride is now also fighting suspension – but because he had requested the
files of investigations into the Nkandla security upgrades, which cost
taxpayers R215 million.
On Tuesday, the DA and Freedom Front Plus reacted with anger over the
confirmation that Dramat had resigned. “It sets a most terrible precedent. The
next time a head of the Hawks calls for inconvenient files such as the Nkandla
files, they will be driven out. (Dramat) was driven out,” said DA MP Dianne
Kohler Barnard.
Said FF+ MP Pieter Groenewald: “We do not appreciate his leaving because
it is quite clear it is because of pressure. We would like to know if there was
a golden handshake. If there was, it is unacceptable because it’s taxpayers’
money.”
The Police Ministry could not be reached for comment and voicemail
requests were not responded to.
Last month, police remained mum on a Mail & Guardian report that put
the settlement figure at a R3m lump sum and monthly R60 000 payments until age
60. This would effectively amount to a total of over R11.6m.
Political Bureau
