"How much do I earn? I can afford to have that amount of money with me with the salary I earn."
This was national police commissioner General Bheki Cele's response when asked why he was carrying R20,000 in a bag which was stolen off an SAA business-class flight in May.
Responding to questions posed by DA MP Dianne Kohler Barnard this week, Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa confirmed in a written reply to Parliament that the stolen bag containing R20,000 belonged to Cele.
This comes after it was alleged that Cele had not reported the incident to the police.
On Wednesday, Cele said he had reported the incident to police at OR Tambo International Airport but had not had time to open a case docket. The matter was, therefore, not investigated.
Mthethwa had said an investigation had taken place, but he did not provide details.
Cele was returning from KwaZulu-Natal after having attended to official business when the money was stolen.
Mthethwa said the money was Cele's private money and was not intended for public use.
Asked by Kohler Barnard whether it was standard for the commissioner to carry such a large amount of cash on his person, Mthethwa said there were no further details.
Kohler Barnard has submitted follow-up questions to the ministry to flesh out the details of the case. She was not satisfied with the response as there were too many unanswered questions.
Kohler Barnard added: "I find it most peculiar and odd that we have a police commissioner who would choose to carry that amount of cash in a bag."
In June, a weekly newspaper reported that Cele's residence in Durban had been burgled. It was alleged that R1 million in cash had been stolen.
But the commissioner said the report was fabricated. "My house was never broken into, I don't know where that story came from," he said.
Cele said he earns more than R1m a year. "Do the calculations yourself. I can afford to draw that amount; not once, not twice, but as many times as I like," he said.- The Star
