On Valentine’s Day, while many were exchanging gifts with their partners, a group gathered at the Mbombela Civic Centre to pray for suspended police minister Senzo Mchunu.
Though Mchunu himself was absent, his spokesperson confirmed that he was aware of the event.
Soon after, another prayer service was held at his home, where church leaders laid hands on the embattled politician.
And if that wasn’t enough, yet another prayer session followed at the Greyville racecourse in Durban, where attendees donned white T-shirts emblazoned with Mchunu’s smiling face.
I’m no political sangoma, but I know a campaign when I see one. We’ve seen this script before.
Recall what happened when a former deputy president was forced out after his financial adviser was convicted of corruption.
He too was showered with prayers and incense, paraded through church services, and made appearances at every funeral of a “comrade.”
Soon came memorial lectures and cadre assemblies. It would not be surprising if Mchunu is following the same playbook.
After all, he was ANC provincial secretary in KwaZulu-Natal when the province propelled Jacob Zuma to the presidency.
Like Zuma, Mchunu now finds himself against the ropes.
President Cyril Ramaphosa recently distanced himself from a decision Mchunu announced on New Year’s Eve 2024.
Responding to questions from parliament’s ad hoc committee investigating allegations by KwaZulu-Natal police commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, Ramaphosa said he had not been consulted before Mchunu issued a letter disbanding the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT).
This directly contradicts Mchunu’s testimony to both parliament and the commission of inquiry, where he claimed Ramaphosa had endorsed the decision.
“The answer in the affidavit is that I briefed the president, and he agreed with the briefing I gave him,” Mchunu told MPs.
Ramaphosa, however, insists this is untrue and revealed he opposed the disbandment.
This revelation is a major blow. Until the president disowned the decision, there was little evidence linking Mchunu to wrongdoing.
None of the testimony presented so far directly connects him to suspected cartel members.
Some witnesses have tried to draw links between Mchunu’s chief of staff Cedrick Nkabinde and Brown Mogotsi, who had dealings with alleged cartel figure Vusimusi “Cat” Matlala.
The narrative goes that Mchunu disbanded the task team to halt investigations into the cartel, including cases involving Matlala.
In return, Matlala would back Mchunu’s presidential ambitions using funds siphoned from SAPS tenders.
It sounds plausible — until one remembers that Mchunu himself cancelled Matlala’s tender.
That contradiction gives his supporters ammunition to recycle the Zuma script, portraying him as a victim of a plot to block his rise to the highest office.
Looking ahead, ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula will likely have his hands full trying to contain Mchunu’s backers.
Already, Mbalula has been busy discouraging supporters of CAF president Patrice Motsepe from running premature campaigns before the NEC formally opens leadership discussions.
Motsepe has publicly distanced himself from the so-called PM27 campaign, but his supporters remain undeterred, arguing he would be a stronger candidate than Mbalula or deputy president Paul Mashatile.
Mbalula may face an even tougher challenge silencing what increasingly looks like a Mchunu campaign.
Before Mkhwanazi’s explosive revelations in July, Mchunu’s name appeared on several slates circulating on social media, often as Motsepe’s deputy.
But with the baggage he has since accumulated, established factions may hesitate to back him.
His supporters, however, could seize this moment to elevate his profile by pushing for the top position outright.
South African politicians, after all, have a reputation for turning scandal into opportunity.
The ANC, in particular, has a knack for electing leaders who carry heavy baggage.
Mchunu’s prayer rallies, his contested decisions, and the contradictions in his testimony all suggest that he is being positioned as yet another “victim” of political machinations.
Whether this strategy succeeds remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: the battle lines for 2029 are already being drawn, and Mchunu’s name will not quietly fade from them.
- Sibongakonke Shoba, Sowetan editor
