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New evidence reported in the Mail and Guardian today raises serious questions about President Jacob Zuma’s involvement in the reinstatement of crime intelligence boss Richard Mdluli, whose suspension was lifted this week after fraud and corruption charges against him were inexplicably dropped in December. On the face of it, this seems to be another attempt by the President to insulate himself from real accountability by stacking his administration with loyal friends who are sworn to protect him.

Richard Mdluli may very well face charges of murder in the near future, if senior prosecutors in the National Prosecuting Authority are allowed to do their jobs without fear of political intervention and intimidation. And while the corruption charges that have plagued him have been dropped for now, they are certainly not gone forever.

The President urgently needs to clarify what involvement he had in the decision to reinstate Mdluli. I have today written to the President to ask, specifically:

Did President Zuma personally contact the Inspector-General of Intelligence, Faith Radebe, about her decision to refer the Mdluli matter back to the National Prosecuting Authority for prosecution?
If so, what was the nature of that contact, and did the President lean on the Inspector-General to alter her decision?
Did the President instruct Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa to order the reinstatement of Mdluli?
Why has he taken such a special personal interest in this matter, considering there are many hundreds of suspensions of senior officials across the civil service?
Did the President attend a function hosted by Mdluli to celebrate the dropping of the charges against him?

The response from the Presidency so far, suggesting that President Zuma is not obliged to tell us who he has called or met, is completely disingenuous and unacceptable. Indeed, the response of the President’s spokesman is tantamount to an admission that the President did call the Inspector-General. It would be totally inappropriate for the President to lean on the constitutionally independent office of the Inspector-General of Intelligence to help save the career of one of his closest allies in the criminal justice system. Even more so for him to order Mdluli’s reinstatement despite the very serious questions of criminal conduct that still hang over Mdluli’s head.

Over the years, the President has systematically surrounded himself with supporters and allies in key positions in the criminal justice system to firewall himself and his Presidency from any legal accountability. The President seems to ally himself with the dodgiest of characters, perhaps because they are the easiest to control, and then ensures they are installed in all of the important positions from which they can protect him.

The Democratic Alliance has fought the gradual but determined building of this crony Praetorian Guard, most notably in our recent court victory challenging the appointment of Adv. Menzi Simelane as National Director of Public Prosecutions. President Zuma must urgently explain to South Africa what role he had in saving Richard Mdluli from accountability, and why.