North West man wins court case over unlawful arrest by SAPS. Images credit: X @ SA Police Service
(The Post News) – South Africa’s Auditor-General (AGSA) has discovered a wave of irregular expenditure within the South African Police Service Organization (SAPS) has taken to rise, amidst a scandal of R2.5 billion which has not died down yet and is yet to be amicably dealt with. With the laws of supply chain management in SAPS, a constant trail of non-compliancy is said to have surfaced.
SAPS tenders have been typically awarded to bidders who are not fitting, or who do not meet the requirements of being a service provider.
According to AGSA, this information was evident on the the budgetary review and recommendation reviews that was discussed on Monday, 3rd November 2025, during a police committee meeting in Parliament.
Some of the most senior police leaders in the country attended this meeting which was held from dusk till dawn.
Numerous presentations were shown in the process which were inclusive of the police’s annual report, highlighting issues regarding the manner in which officers were involved in certain criminal activities.
In essence, a number of 18,169 arrests were made in links to illegal mining (zama-zama) which posed major threats and involved thousands of mine workers, majority those from our neighboring countries.
572 police-owned firearms were reported missing or stolen during the financial year 2024/2025 which indicated an approximate 23% decrease from the period prior to this one. The figures were not considered of hinderance to the AGSA and their report.
AGSA confirmed their report is applicable to the Independent Police Investigative Directorate, the Civilian Secretariat for Police Service, the Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority and the SAPS. However, SAPS is said to have been the “agenda” of the meeting that took place.
The report made a discovery on the history SAPS has on “slow progress” in terms of dealing with irregular expenditure. The SAPS stood out with the highest amount recorded of such events.
What Equates to R3,2bn In Expenditure Total
According to the report given by the AGSA, its stated that: “investigated irregular expenditure not submitted to relevant authorities for further action” had amounted to R2,497,765,500, meaning, just below R2.5 billion. The period in which this figure was related to was not clarified.
During the 2024/2025 financial year, it was discovered that an amount of R649,722,000 is the result of irregular expenditure from the police.
The report further states: “The SAPS has disclosed R56 million expenditure under assessment. The assessment process is currently underway in determining the nature and extend of the incidents which led to such transgressions.”
When all three figures were attached to make a single amount, they amounted to R3.2 billion, which intensified all underlying highly concerning controversies already tainting the SAPS brand.
In July 2025, an unexpected scandal was brought to the country’s attention by KwaZulu-Natal’s Police Commissioner General Nhlanhla Mkhwanzi, claiming that a drug trafficking syndicate had infiltrated the country’s law enforcement principles, politics and private security.
Mkhwanzi made serious allegations, implicating suspended Police Minster, Senzo Mchunu, as well as suggesting that Mchunu had a link to murder accused Vusimuzi “Cat” Matlala.
It is alleged that Matlala has benefitted worth R360 million in SAPS tenders only in health services contract in the year 2024. This contract has currently been cancelled.
The Madlanga Commission of Inquiry and parallel parliamentary Ad HOC Committee have been in the process of investigating the allegations made by Mkhwanazi and are expected to have completed the investigation by the 28th November 2025.
Growth In Irregular Expenditure
The SAPS have been reported to have been experiencing stagnation in audits for the past 5 years. This was viewed as a subsequent emphasis on the pressing matter of strengthening accountability mechanisms.
A section within the AGSA report stated that the SAPS has shown persistent non-compliance with supply chain management (SCM) laws and regulations. This is inclusive of irregularities in the procurement of goods and services, which have contributed to a growing trend of irregular expenditure. It further states that despite the repeated discoveries and recommendations, the department has failed in implementing sufficient corrective measures, leading to continued non-compliance statuses in SCM.
This was consistently “touched on” subject, with Matlala’s being mentioned in passing.
The report mentioned that following each audit cycle, action plans were subsequently developed to address problems. Reasons motivating this issue were mentioned to be inclusive of bid evaluation committees failing to exercise proper diligence when dealing with tenders.
Some bids have been awarded to suppliers who did not meet bidding requirements, whilst the bidders who did were shown the door and rendered “disqualified”.
Rise Mzansi’s Maksshule Gana was present in the meeting held on Monday and gave his opinion of believing that the SAPS infighting was the consequence of SCM issues.
Gana claimed that the fights were not based on the protection of South African Citizens.
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