After delays, the Madlanga Commission on corruption and political interference will start public hearings on 17 September.
After a bumpy start, the Judicial Commission of Inquiry into Criminality, Political Interference, and Corruption in the Criminal Justice System will begin public hearings on 17 September 2025.
The commission spokesperson, Jeremy Michaels, confirmed that the hearings will commence in two weeks.
Last week, on 26 August, Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga disappointed South Africans when he announced that the hearings would not commence as initially expected due to a delay in procuring vital infrastructure.
Madlanga commission will start public hearings on 17 September
“The commission notes the award of several contracts by the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development, including IT equipment and ICT infrastructure services,” Michaels said on Friday.
“The commission further notes that significant progress has been made by the appointed service providers to set up the various services in accordance with the commission’s requirements.”
Michaels added that the commission expects to finalise all IT infrastructure and preparations in time to start hearings without further delays.
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Prior to the announcement on Friday, political analyst Professor Ntsikelelo Breakfast told The Citizen that the unfolding events do not paint a good picture about the upcoming commission, tasked with investigating serious allegations that pose a threat to the country’s security architecture.
“It’s very interesting because the allegation that has been made by [KZN police commissioner Nhlanhla] Mkhwanazi at the heart of everything that he said is the issue of corruption, and now you have a commission that was set out to kick off on a particular day being moved to the right, and one suspects that that also has to do with corruption,” Breakfast said.
Earlier this week, on Tuesday, Acting Police Minister Professor Firoz Cachalia and National Police Commissioner General Fannie Masemola vowed to collaborate in fighting political killings and corruption, and rebuilding public trust in law enforcement.
Cachalia and Masemola bury hatchet over KZN dockets
This comes after the acting minister and general disagreed over the return of case dockets that were taken from the political killings task team in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).
City Press reported that President Cyril Ramaphosa is dissatisfied with the conduct of both the commissioner and minister.
On Monday, Cachalia and Masemola met to save face.
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The minister and commissioner agreed that Saps capacity must be strengthened to investigate councillor and public official killings.
Cachalia and Masemola committed to safeguarding the Madlanga commission of inquiry’s integrity. They also pledged the support of Saps and all its members.
The officials confirmed that the political killings task team will submit the dockets to the commission in the format it requires.
Pledge to support Saps
“This is to ensure the integrity of the dockets and enable the commission to thoroughly investigate all the matters related to its terms of reference,” the minister and the national commissioner said.
“Where there are matters in these dockets requiring urgent further criminal investigations or prosecution, the Saps will advise the commission accordingly.”
