Hlophe Calls Mchunu a ‘Pathological Liar’ as MK Party Demands Ramaphosa Act

(The Post News)- Tensions are boiling over between uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party and government, with MK Party Deputy President Dr. John Hlophe launching blistering accusations against Police Minister Senzo Mchunu, branding him a “pathological liar” and accusing him of perjury, misleading Parliament, and obstructing justice.

In a searing interview with Newzroom Afrika, Hlophe, joined by MK Party MP Visvin Reddy, said Mchunu’s alleged misconduct goes beyond careless political misstatements. “Minister Senzo Mchunu is a pathological liar. He has lied in Parliament at least on two occasions in my presence,” Hlophe charged. According to Hlophe, one of those lies involved Mchunu giving Parliament a fake hotline number. Another involved an alleged misstatement about DNA evidence in a child abuse case in the Eastern Cape. “He said the DNA of the headmaster had been obtained. We all know he was lying. Investigations later showed no DNA was collected,” said Hlophe.

The MK Party claims it has escalated the matter. “David Skosana formally laid criminal charges against Minister Senzo Mchunu, including perjury and defeating the ends of justice,” Hlophe confirmed. The storm around Mchunu intensified after KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi publicly accused high-ranking officials of protecting drug syndicates and obstructing investigations. Hlophe says Mkhwanazi’s testimony should be a turning point for the country. “We shouldn’t be distracted. This is the real crisis.”

At the heart of the latest controversy is a March 5 statement by Mchunu to Parliament, where he denied knowing businessman Brown Mogotsi, who’s since been linked to alleged political interference in policing. Four months later, Mchunu walked back his denial, admitting he does know Mogotsi “as a comrade.” Reddy, meanwhile, suggested Mchunu’s ties stretch all the way to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s 2017 CR17 campaign. “Delegates in KZN were bought. The money appeared to come from drug syndicates,” said Reddy. MK Party’s Gauteng spokesperson Abel Tau said the party was stunned that Ramaphosa had fired DA Deputy Minister Andrew Whitfield over an unauthorized trip, but remained silent on Mchunu. “It shows selective accountability. Minister Mchunu should’ve been suspended at the very least,” Tau said outside the Alexandra Magistrate’s Court on Friday.

He also linked Mchunu to the unresolved Phala Phala scandal, claiming the minister was being protected for political reasons. “You scratch my back, I scratch yours, criminally,” he said. Ramaphosa is expected to respond to these mounting allegations in a national address on Sunday, 13 July. His office said he will “take the nation into his confidence” after a week of security briefings and internal consultations. MK Party has vowed to keep pressure on. Plans are in place for a protest outside the Union Buildings and a formal memorandum to be delivered to Gauteng Police Commissioner Lieutenant General Tommy Mthombeni. “The rot is not only in KZN,” said Tau, “it’s everywhere.”