The leave is to become effective from today, and was aimed at ensuring that the men's colleagues did not feel intimidated when questioned by investigators, he told reporters in Pretoria.
The probe was launched following media reports concerning the alleged misuse of three Volvos ordered by metro police chief Mpho Mmuthle and acquired at a cost of R1,1-million.
The cars were intended to be used for high-speed pursuits, and were to have been fitted with special equipment for this purpose.
Instead, they were allegedly given to Mmuthle's deputies – Cassie Coetzer, Pius Mokhine and Boetie Sekhudu - for their private use.
Sekhudu is Mmuthle's brother-in-law.
Mkhatshwa said yesterday the internal investigation team's final report should be completed in two weeks. This period could be extended, if needed.
The mayor received an interim report from the investigators last Friday, based on which a decision was made to extend the team's deadline, broaden its scope and increase its capacity.
To this end, additional capacity has been requested from the provincial department of safety and liaison, Mkhatshwa said.
He stressed that the probe was not only into the reported allegations but into the functionality of the metro police as a whole.
"When a person has a sore on his leg, a good doctor will examine the entire body to identify the root cause," he explained.
Should weaknesses be found, one should keep in mind that the metro police was a very young organisation, the mayor said.
He added he was proud of the department, saying it had worked very effectively since its inception last year.
"One cannot say that if one child does something bad the entire family is rotten".
Mkhatshwa said the decision to grant the four men leave was not judgmental or punitive in nature.
"If we had grounds to believe they are guilty obviously they would have been charged.
We hope to be in a position (after the investigation) to clear people's names. But if the allegations stick, appropriate action will be taken".
Other metro police officials would be appointed to act in the four men's positions until they return to their posts.
The allegations are also subject to a police investigation.
In the morning, hundreds of metro police members gathered outside their head office in Pretoria West for a feed-back meeting organised by the SA Municipal Workers Union, which briefed them on the latest developments. – Sapa.
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