Disgruntled metro police officers from the Tshwane Metro Police Department (TMPD) staged a protest outside their headquarters in Pretoria West, expressing their outrage over alleged bribery and unfair promotion practices within the department.

The officers, who chanted slogans and held placards with anti-corruption messages, took issue with the recent promotions to warrant officer positions, claiming that the appointments were marred by corruption and bias.

One of them, Sergeant Themba Nkabinde, who has been stuck in the same rank for 15 years, claimed that the final list of recommended promotions was tampered with.

“There have been lots of allegations that others paid R40 000 as a bribe and that the list has been fiddled with. There were allegations that some names were cut from lists provided by supervisors from different units for their members to be appointed,” he said.

He expressed concern that when he reviewed the list of candidates selected for fingerprinting, he noticed that some individuals who were not acting supervisors were chosen, while those who had been actively running shifts were overlooked.

He said the workers were also deeply dissatisfied with the fact that individuals with as much as 20 years of experience were passed over for promotion, which they felt was a blatant disregard for their dedication and service.

Sergeant Matilda Kgope, who has spent 12 years in her role, said her issue was not with those who received promotions, but rather the lack of transparent criteria used in the selection process.

“I don’t expect a person with eight years experience to get a promotion over a person who has been working for 22 years as a sergeant. There are people I know who worked under sergeants and were promoted. Those people will now be leading sergeants, which is unfair. This thing that people paid R40 000 is also unfair. It is not for the first time to come across those allegations,” Kgope said.

Sergeant Mabele Mahlakwane, a veteran officer with 25 years of experience, alleged chief of police Yolande Faro compromised the recruitment process by submitting a list of candidates which she prioritised based on their ethnicity.

“Faro brought her own list from nowhere of people that were not appearing on the initial list. Some of the senior people will be removed to accommodate those people of her own race, which I don’t want to specify,” he said.

He said the lack of career advancement opportunities within the department has created a profoundly demoralising work environment, particularly among senior officers who have dedicated decades of service without being considered for promotion.

“This institution took me to study for a BTech degree but I am not being used. Why don’t they use me while I have been equipped with education?” he said.

TMPD spokesperson senior superintendent Isaac Mahamba said the department has not formally received any complaints regarding sex-for-jobs allegations and others related to corruption and bribery.

“We are dealing with the police and they know how to handle corruption issues. If there are allegations that there is corruption involved they must report the cases. From where I am seated there is not even a single case that is being reported to us or to the SAPS. As a department we didn’t receive any formal complaint concerning corruption,” he said.

He said the same goes for allegations of sexual harassment, which were raised by the complainants.

“If they are saying there are bedroom promotions they must come forward with that information to us. We will investigate,” he said.

As far as he was concerned all the sergeants who were recommended for the warrant officers' positions possess the necessary qualifications and meet the requirements for the role.

He clarified that the demographics of those qualified for positions actually reflected a diverse range.

For example, he said that 80% of the qualified candidates were African, 10% were colored, and 4% were white.

“Where is the race issue coming in? That information is baseless. The Chief of Police is never a racist. She is the one who is always on the ground with our members, working hard and making sure they get what they want,” Mahamba said.

rapula.moatshe@inl.co.za

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Metro police officers protest against alleged bribery and unfair promotions