Chapter 36

CHAPTER 36
PIETERMARITZBURG
MANAGEMENT AREA
259

CHAPTER 36
PIETERMARITZBURG MANAGEMENT AREA
CONTENTS
Page
1. Introduction 261
2. Population 261
3. Staffing 262
4. Division between Managers 263
5. Operation Quiet Storm 268
5.1 Key Role Players 271
5.1.1 Mr Russell Ngubo 271
5.1.2 Mr Thamsanqa Obedient Memela 276
5.1.3 Mr Nhlanhla Charles Ndumo 277
5.2 Mrs Thandiwe Kgotsidintsi 278
6. Intimidation 282
7. Discipline 283
8. Recruitment 284
9. Promotions and Merits 284
10. The Prison Hospital 285
11. Prisoners’ Assaulted by Warders 287
260

CHAPTER 36
PIETERMARITZBURG MANAGEMENT AREA
1. INTRODUCTION
The Pietermaritzburg Management Area consists of two (2) prisons, Medium
A and Medium B. Medium A is sometimes referred to by witnesses as the
“New Prison”.
The Female Prison, Medium B, is a building on its own. It is about three (3)
kilometres away from the Main Prison (New Prison). The Female Prison
receives its cooked meals from the Main Prison.
2. POPULATION
Evidence put before the Commission showed that there were 2 984 prisoners
at Pietermaritzburg Prison as at 19 March 2002. The approved
accommodation for the prison is 1 399, which means the prison was
overpopulated by 113%.
According to the official records, the average population of the two prisons
during March 2002 was:
Medium A:
Medium B:
2 952 (224.96% full)
53 (42,40% full)
The records show that Medium A stood at an average of 230% during the
period from February 2002 to June 2003, while Medium B was on average
about 68% full during the same period, but on average 115% during the first
three months of 2003. On 1 April 2002 there were four (4) babies in the
Female Prison.
261

The Commission heard evidence that unit management requires that only two
(2) to three (3) inmates be held in a cell, but this is not achievable and in some
cases five (5) to ten (10) prisoners are held in one (1) cell due to the
unavailability of space. The communal cells designed to accommodate
nineteen (19) prisoners sometimes hold fifty (50).
3. STAFFING
The staff complement of the Management Area is 1 367 and is made up as
follows:
Pietermaritzburg Area Commissioner:
Pietermaritzburg Medium A:
Pietermaritzburg Medium B:
933 (74 vacant)
409 (16 vacant)
25 (14 vacant)
The Commission heard that there is a great shortage of personnel due to the
fact that the prison was restructured so that the operation of the buildings
could be carried out by “control panels’’. However, personnel to operate the
panels have not been provided for. In addition, a significant number of
personnel are used to guard prisoners outside the prison during court or
hospital visits. It emerged during the hearings that the fully equipped prison
hospital was not being used and this placed work pressure on the staff
because inmates had to be escorted to provincial hospitals outside the prison
premises.
The office of the Provincial Commissioner of KwaZulu-Natal has been located
within the precinct of the Pietermaritzburg Management Area since May/June
1999 and the nearest police station that services the Pietermaritzburg
Management Area is the Prestbury Police Station.
There has been a high turnover of Provincial Commissioners for KwaZulu-
Natal and this to some extent is an indication of the problem in the
262

Management Area and the Province as a whole. In the circumstances it is
appropriate to consider their terms of office, which are as follows:
Name Term of Office Previous Place of
Appointment
Mr J. Hills 1994 – 31-03-1995 Head Office: Pretoria
Mr P.A. Zandberg 1995-04-01 – 23-06-1995 Gauteng
Mr J.W. Harding 26-06-1995 – 31-03-1997 Durban
Mr M.T. Ntoni 01-04-1997 – 28-02-1999 Director: Regional Office
KZN
Mr S.E. Korabie 01-03-1999 – 30-04-1999 Head Office: Pretoria
Mrs.T.S.
01-01-1999 – 30-04-1999 Head Office: Pretoria
Kgosidintsi
Mr G .J. Fourie 01-06-1999 – 30-07-1999 Head Office: Pretoria
Mr C.T. Jordaan 10-08-1999 – 30-06-2000 Head Office: Pretoria
Mr P.
01-08-2000 – 30-10-2003 Head Office: Pretoria
O’C Gillingham
Mr F. Engelbrecht 01-11-2003 – 31-01-2004 DCS – KZN
(Acting)
Mr V.P. Petersen 01-02-2004 – present External appointment
4. DIVISION BETWEEN MANAGERS
Evidence shows that management at Pietermaritzburg was gravely divided
into two (2) camps, to the extent that one group of managers sought to
undermine the other group. The situation was further exacerbated by the fact
that a key role player, Mr Russell Ngubo, was feared by almost all the
managers except for the few who formed part of his clique. 1 Mr Ngubo was a
senior member of Popcru and of the Pietermaritzburg Prison management. In
1
At the time of writing Mr Ngubo was imprisoned and sentenced on charges of
murdering Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) leader Nash Protus Ngubane on 13
September 1995. See Pietermaritzburg High Court case number CC 56/03.
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February 1998 he was Head of the Pietermaritzburg Prison 2 and at the time of
the hearings he was Head of Human Resource Management. His clique was
referred to by some witnesses as the ‘‘A Team’’. Its members, at the time of
the hearings, included the Supervisor in the Personnel Office, Mr T.O.
Memela; Head of Personnel Mr N.C. Ndumo; Section Head of Personnel Mr
D.K. Mbanjwa; Ms Mlungisi Dlamini (Mr Ngubo’s fiancée at the time); the
Section Head of the Institutional Committee Miss B. Mahaye, and others.
Those in the ‘‘B Team’’ included the Deputy Chairperson of the Institutional
Committee, Mr F.A. Mbanjwa; Assistant Head of Prison Mr V.J. Ndlovu;
Assistant Head of the Institutional Committee Mr M.E. “Elvis” Nene; former
Area Manager Miss F.G. Nkosi; Head of Security Mr N.S. “Snotty” Mkhize,
and Pietermaritzburg Area Manager Mr D.J. Makhaye (who subsequently
became the Area Manager in Kokstad).
Other witnesses referred to the ‘‘A Team’’ and “B” Team as the Makhulu (‘‘Big
One’’) and Mancane (‘‘Small One’’) camps, respectively. This reference was
indicated that the ‘‘A Team’’ was the dominant, more powerful camp.
Mr Alfred Mbanjwa describes the impact of the division in his affidavit to the
Commission:
“The people who are part of the A-group or who are deemed to be his
[Mr Ngubo’s] followers have not done so voluntarily. They have been
forced into that position because they recognise that if they do not
dance to his particular tune they will get nowhere in the prison. A prime
example of this is me. I have never received any promotions,
increments or any advancements because of the fact that I am deemed
to be his opposition. Mr Ngubo is known to make life very difficult for
those people who do not ascribe to his particular ideology or who do
not support him.” 3
2
3
See Pietermaritzburg Exhibit ‘X’.
As per Pietermaritzburg Exhibit ‘F’.
264

This division within management was described as part of the reason for the
animosity and conflict that existed between members of management. In
addition, the Commission heard that it was the ‘‘B Team’’ that did the majority
of the work required to run the prison. By the time the Commission held its
hearings on Pietermaritzburg, a number of the members of the “A Team’’ had
been arrested on a number of charges and were in custody awaiting trial.
It was clear to the Commission that managing the Pietermaritzburg Prison is a
difficult task. This is also reflected in the staff turnover. The current Head of
Prison seems to be the one who has stayed the longest after 1994.
The terms of office of the Heads of the Pietermaritzburg Prison are as follows:
Name Term of Office Previous Place of
Appointment
Mr P.G. Roets 1994 – 31-03-1997 Barberton
Mr C.P. van der Merwe 01-04-1997 – 31-05-1997 Pietermaritzburg Prison
Mr D.S. Mthethwa 01-06-1997 – 31-01-1998 Pietermaritzburg Prison
Mr B.R. Ngubo 01-02-1998 – 02-03-1999 Pietermaritzburg Prison
Mr V.J. Ndlovu 03-03-1999 – 04-04-2002 Pietermaritzburg Prison
Mr B.B. Mchunu 05-04-2000 – present Pietermaritzburg Prison
According to the initial evidence, Mr Ngubo was appointed as Head of
Pietermaritzburg Prison on 1 February 1998 after acting as Head of Prison in
Newcastle. This information was supplied on 19 October 2004 by the
Regional Commissioner, Mr J. C. Taljaard. 4
However, according to the Department’s latest letter from the Regional Coordinator
Human Resource Management and Support, Mr Mzileni, dated 8
4
See Pietermaritzburg Exhibit ‘X’.
265

November 2005, Mr Ngubo was appointed as Head of Prison on 12 January
1998. 5
Mr Mzileni sent another letter dated 8 November 2005, in which he stated
that:
“According to the information available at the Personnel Section
Mr Ngubo was appointed as Head of Pietermaritzburg
Correctional Centre on 1999-07-01 to 2000-01-01.” 6 (Own
emphasis).
Therefore three (3) separate dates were submitted to the Commission as the
date of his appointment, were submitted to the Commission. This once again
reflects on the problem with managing information in the Department, which
was referred to earlier in this report. 7
The Terms of Office for the Area Managers are as follows :
Name
Term of Office
1 Ms F.G. Nkosi August 1997 to June 1999
2 Mr D. J. Makhaye July 1999 to June 2002
3 Mr J.M. Mkhabela June 2002 to May 2003
4 Mr J.E. Joseph January 2004 to February 2005
5 Mr M.A. Mdletye May 2005 to date
5
6
7
See Pietermaritzburg Exhibit ‘X1’.
See Pietermaritzburg Exhibit ‘X2’.
See the section dealing with Information Management in Chapter One of this report.
266

A report compiled by Brite Future Consultants, a team of psychologists, and
presented to the Department of Correctional Services in October 1998,
highlighted a number of problems relating to management issues, and
particularly the division within management.
It states that at the time there was a “high level of tension and dissatisfaction,
frustration, anger and mistrust” at the prison, and that there was a general
perception by members that management lack the essential leadership
qualities required to steer the organisation in the right direction. Examples
cited were:
(a) Political allegiance is the major criterion for appointing personnel to
management positions.
(b) Management does not devolve power to allow people who carry out the
day-to-day duties of the Department to have a say in decisions that
they will have to carry out.
(c) No training and development opportunities exist to acquaint staff with
the rules and regulations of the Department.
(d) Leadership fails to implement decisions.
(e) Recruitment procedures and advertisements for posts apply only to
people who are targeted for particular jobs.
(f) Information is not widely disseminated and as a result members have
to rely on hearsay.
(g) Management and staff lack discipline.
(h) A general breakdown of organisational norms and standards. 8
Mrs Thandiwe Kgotsidintsi, who has held several senior positions within the
Department, told the Commission that the then Provincial Commissioner, Mr
Maxwell Ntoni, attributed many of the problems in the Department of
Correctional Services in KwaZulu-Natal to a political division between
members aligned to the Inkatha Freedom Party and others to the African
National Congress. This allegation was made at a meeting with Mrs
8
See Pietermaritzburg hearings, Exhibit ‘A’ at pages 7 – 116.
267

Kgotsidintsi and the then National Commissioner, Mr Khulekani Sithole, who
raised a number of concerns with Mr Ntoni about the way Correctional
Services in the province had been operating. 9 These included:
(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)
(v)
(iv)
(vii)
The withdrawal by Mr Ntoni of a charge of firearm theft against Mr
Ngubo.
Allowing Mr N.C. Ndumo to use a Department of Correctional Services
minibus to open an ANC branch rally. The vehicle was subsequently
“hijacked”.
Ncome Prison continuing to be unruly and ungovernable, with frequent
escapes and the daily theft of prison cattle.
The Area Manager of Westville Prison, Mr I.S. Zulu, being bailed out by
Mr Ntoni after allegedly being caught by the police with a boot full of
dagga.
Mr Ngubo, Mr Ndumo and Mr Memela running Correctional Services in
KwaZulu-Natal and causing chaos.
Mr Ntoni allowing the media too much access to Mr P.M. Ntuli.
Mr Ntoni’s defiance in several cases where Mr Sithole had instructed
him to take specific actions.
Mrs Kgotsidintsi said that the meeting ended abruptly because the National
Commissioner and the Provincial Commissioner were so angry that they
began to exchange blows. 10
5. OPERATION QUIET STORM
Operation Quiet Storm was a plan of action conceived by members of Popcru
to forcibly transform and restructure the Department of Correctional Services.
Sit-ins were organised and unwanted personnel were systematically targeted
and hounded out of office either by intimidation or violence. In some cases the
unwanted individuals were simply removed by force from their offices and
never again allowed to enter the prison premises. Operation Quiet Storm was
9
10
See Pietermaritzburg transcript Volume 13 page 1 169.
See Pietermaritzburg Volume 13 at page 1 172.
268

vigorously implemented in Pietermaritzburg, which is historically a stronghold
of Popcru, and other KwaZulu-Natal prisons. 11 However, the Commission
heard that it was the intention of Popcru to launch the plan in KwaZulu-Natal
initially, and then roll it out nationally. 12
Mr Philemon Mphikiseni Ntuli, the Provincial Liaison Officer in KwaZulu-Natal
and an office bearer of Popcru, testified that the Department of Correctional
Services in KwaZulu-Natal was effectively “hijacked” following a meeting at
the Pietermaritzburg offices of Popcru. The meeting was attended by Popcru
officials, paid up members and sympathisers from various regions around
KwaZulu-Natal as well as a representative from the national office of
Popcru. 13
Discussions at the meeting were led by Mr Ngubo, Mr Nhlanhla Ndumo and
Mr Nhlanhla Zondi 14 and a plan, which was code-named Operation Quiet
Storm, was formulated. Mr Ntuli’s evidence is dealt with in more detail in the
Chapter dealing with the Historical Background.
Besides Mr Ntuli’s evidence the Commission received other affidavits, minutes
of meetings and press cuttings that supported the evidence about Operation
Quiet Storm. 15
Popcru had embarked on Operation Quiet Storm to make sure that before the
end of November 1996 they would successfully place members in strategic
positions in six (6) prisons. 16
11
12
13
14
15
16
See Historical Background and Trade Unionism Chapters for more details.
Evidence heard by the Commission pointed to Operation Quiet Storm being rolled out
nationally, or at least in the Eastern Cape, Free State and Gauteng.
Mr Mataka, who was then the Secretary General of Popcru, tried to deny that they
attended such a meeting, for obvious reasons. For more details on the union’s role in
this regard refer to the chapter on Historical Background.
Messrs Ndumo and Ngubo appeared before the Commission and also tried to deny
the existence of Operation Quiet Storm.
For more details refer to Chapter on Historical Background.
As per Pietermaritzburg Exhibit ‘WWWW8’.
269

Several newspaper articles also support the evidence about Operation Quiet
Storm. Mr Ntuli was quoted as Popcru’s provincial spokesman in the Natal
Witness of 17 October 1996 as saying that the siege of the Ncome Prison by
Popcru members was part of a provincial campaign to depose the prison
commanders and transform the prisons. The article continues:
“What started out as a gradual process of transforming the prison
service early this year turned into a popular revolt by POPCRU. The
union confirmed yesterday that prison commanders and their deputies
at the Stanger, Empangeni, Sevontein, Westville and Ncome
correctional facilities have been removed from their posts over the past
month.
Ntuli blamed the revolt on ‘the fact that nothing has been done to visibly
change the present racial composition of management since the
beginning of the transformation process.’
‘We saw no other viable strategy to transform the prisons other than by
force.
‘We therefore opted to elect black staff into management positions to
run the prisons,’ he said.” (Own emphasis)
Evidence with regard to meetings held at Newcastle Prison and Port
Shepstone Prison revealed that Mr Ngubo, Mr Ndumo and Mr J.B.T. Chaka 17
were not hesitant to involve themselves in the affairs of other areas on behalf
of the Department of Correctional Services.
A senior correctional officer and the Deputy National Chairman of the Public
Servants Association, Mr Zeblon Mthethwa, told the Commission that the
three (3) men visited the Newcastle Prison on 11 September 1998 to discuss
a complaint about a member who had been transferred from Ncome
17
Mr J.B.T. Chaka was in charge of Labour Relations in the Province and he is still
employed as such.
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Management Area to Newcastle. The three (3) arrived in a minibus that had
been hired by the Durban Management Area, but had been used the previous
day during a visit by Popcru leadership to the Newcastle Prison.
The Area Manager of the Port Shepstone Area, Mr Thandanani William
Siswana, said that Mr Ngubo, Mr Ndumo and Mr Chaka visited him in Port
Shepstone on 2 September 1998 to discuss the equity policy according to
which seventy per cent (70%) of all posts had to be given to blacks while thirty
per cent (30%) had to go to whites. There was also discussion about a Mrs
Kruger, the wife of the former Head of the Prison, who worked for the
Department of Correctional Services but was still staying in the house
allocated to the Head of the Prison with her husband, who had taken a
severance package. Mr Siswana said that he was unable to evict Mrs Kruger
without finding alternative accommodation for her. However, he testified that
he was told that he was just keeping her on because he is “afraid of whites”.
Mr Siswana said that when the three men left he did not have as much control
over his junior warders because he had been embarrassed in front of them.
Whilst many Commanders, mnagers and senior officials, who were hounded
out of their offices as a result of Operation Quiet Storm, did not testify before
the Commission either because of fear or because they might have wanted to
put their traumatic experiences behind them, the Commission is of the view
that the experiences of Mrs Kgosidintsi and Mr E.P.Claasen, best illustrate
the nature of the operation and the traumatic effect it had on its victims. 18
5.1 Key Role Players
5.1.1 Mr Russell Ngubo
A senior official in the Department of Correctional Services in KwaZulu-Natal,
Mr Russell Ngubo, has been one of the key role players in activities related to
Correctional Services in the Pietermaritzburg area, and even further afield in
18
Ms Kgosinditsi and Mr Claasen’s evidence will be dealt with hereinafter.
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KwaZulu-Natal. The important role that he played in Operation Quiet Storm
and in the powerful ‘‘A Team’’ of Correctional Services officials has already
been mentioned.
In October 1997, Mr Ngubo was appointed as Acting Commander at
Newcastle Prison. According to documents in the Commission’s possession,
Mr Ngubo immediately removed a number of non-Popcru members from their
posts. 19
During a significant portion of his time as a senior Correctional Services
official, Mr Ngubo was also a local government councillor for the ANC in
Impendle.
Late in 1997 Mr Ngubo was appointed as the Head of Pietermaritzburg’s New
Prison and by 2001 he had been appointed as Head of Human Resources at
the Prison.
Mr Ngubo has featured prominently in the media over the years. He was
reported to have been out on bail for his alleged involvement in the murder in
1996 of four members of a family at the time of his appointment as Head of
the Pietermaritzburg Prison in January 1998. He was also linked to a shooting
incident outside a Pietermaritzburg court in 1996 when seven (7) members of
the IFP were on trial for the murder of Mr Ngubo’s brother and four (4)
19
Minutes of meeting between Mr T.D. Ntombela (Member of the KwaZulu-Natal
Legislature), Mrs N.C. Mkhize and 21 prison warders at Newcastle Prison on 9
January 1998. The minutes also state that from 10 October 1997, Mr Ngubo used a
state vehicle despite the fact that he has no driver’s licence. “He travelled between
Newcastle and Pietermaritzburg on a daily basis. A state vehicle, KZN 90301, was
drawn by the Area Manager, Mr Dladla, and was later found on the Durban
beachfront. From October 1997, Mr Ngubo and his assistant were booked at the
Amajuba Lodge for more than two months. They changed their official booking from
“sharing” to two double rooms to accommodate their girlfriends. The cost to the state
for their accommodation and meals has been R28 000. There was an available house
next to the prison where they could have stayed and alternatively Waterval Prison has
guest accommodation. In addition to this, Mr Ngubo was claiming R39 a day SNT
[sic].”
272

policemen. 20 In 1999 charges relating to the attempted murder of two (2)
members of the United Democratic Movement (UDM) were withdrawn against
Mr Ngubo. 21
In early 2002, Mr Ngubo, Mr Ndumo and Mr Memela were arrested and
charged with the murder of Impendle Induna Ernest Nzimande (who had
defected from the ANC to the IFP) and the attempted murder of three (3) other
men, including Nzimande’s bodyguard in September 1998. The three (3) men,
and two (2) others, were acquitted on the charges in December 2002. 22
The State alleged in the trial that a minibus driven by Mr Nzimande’s attackers
had been leased to the KwaZulu-Natal government garage and assigned to
Westville Prison and then to Pietermaritzburg New Prison. The vehicle was
found overturned and set alight not far from the murder scene. Mr Ndumo
later reported that he had been hijacked while driving the vehicle. A senior
official in the Department of Correctional Services was reported in the Natal
Witness as saying that the minibus was regularly used by top officials at New
Prison to commit criminal offences. 23
In November 2000, the Commission heard, Mr Ngubo and the Area Manager
D.J. Makhaye were involved in a physical fight. The Commission heard that
Mr Ngubo attacked Mr Makhaye after the Area Manager refused to sign Mr
Ngubo’s leave form. No disciplinary action was taken against Mr Ngubo but
when the Provincial Commissioner recommended the two members and
others be transferred from the Management Area, Mr Ngubo and the others
lodged grievances. The transfers were never executed.
20
21
22
23
KwaZulu-Natal Briefing, No 15 June/July 1999. The publication states that in one
case charges were withdrawn after two key witnesses were murdered by unknown
gunmen, while in another case no charges were brought.
Natal Witness 19 May 1999 “Charges against Ngubo dropped”.
The Mercury 13 December 2002 “Top prison officials acquitted”.
Natal Witness 5 April 2002.
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An editorial in the Natal Witness in 2002 questioned how Mr Ngubo had “led
such a charmed life in public office, not only hanging onto his job but being
rewarded with promotions time after time”. 24
“In the first place, how can any civil servant get away with
insubordination towards their minister as Ngubo showed Correctional
Services Minister Sipo Mzimela when he wanted to close the New
Prison in 1998? His exact words were: ‘This old man is about to die.
His days are numbered. He is mad and he is too old. He must go to
hell.’
In the second place, how can he admit to having had an argy-bargy
with a superior and not at least be suspended pending a disciplinary
hearing? After the incident [of assault] with his boss, KwaZulu-Natal
prisons area manager Dumisani Makhaye, Ngubo called him a ‘crybaby’
and was reported as saying: ‘Weak men cannot keep discipline.
Besides, Makhaye hardly suffered at all. It was hardly an assault. If I
had attacked Makhaye, do you think he would still be here?’
Finally, how could he have held office as a councillor simultaneously
with his job as a deputy director in the Department of Correctional
Services, in contravention of regulations?” 25
The Commission also heard testimony from members who said that State
firearms had been removed from the Department’s premises without having
been signed for and that on one occasion police found a prison gun at Mr
Ngubo’s home. No departmental action was apparently taken against Mr
Ngubo in this regard. In addition, State firearms were not handed in despite
instructions to that effect.
Ms Melanie Valayathum, who worked as a personnel clerk in 1997, told the
Commission that her supervisor, Mr Majola, told her to indicate that the days
24
25
Natal Witness 6 April 2002 “A charmed public life” by Yves Vanderhaeghen.
Ibid 24.
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on which Mr Ngubo was not at work while he was facing criminal charges,
should be marked as leave without pay. She testified that after the charges
were dropped in December 1997, Mr Ngubo came to her office and said that
he wanted his leave payment. When she indicated that she had been carrying
out instructions he became upset, refused to leave her office and screamed at
her. When she refused to call her supervisor and said that he should go to the
supervisor himself, Mr Ngubo pulled her out of her chair. Ms Valayathum
provided a statement for a disciplinary inquiry, but heard nothing further about
the investigation. She was too scared to lay criminal charges with the police.
Several witnesses testified before the Commission about how the Head of
Prison suspended the garden span while an investigation was underway into
the cause of several escapes late in 2000. However, Mr Ngubo took fourteen
(14) prisoners to the garden on 6 February 2001. When the Area Manager
and Head of Prison tried to serve a letter of suspension on Mr Ngubo the
same day he swore at them and again took prisoners to the garden the
following day. The matter was subsequently reported to the police. 26 A
disciplinary hearing into the incident was never finalised.
The Area Manager issued a written instruction on 9 February 2001 refusing
access to the prison to Mr Ngubo. However, two (2) days later Mr Ngubo
defied the instruction and took one hundred and four (104) prisoners from the
prison to the soccer field.
Mr Ngubo then attempted to gain access to the prison on 17 February 2001,
an incident which caused the South African Police Service to intervene.
The Commission also heard evidence about improper procedures being
followed with regard to access control at the prison gates. Mr Funukubusa
Mbanjwa said that when people came to the prison to visit Mr Ngubo the
26
A criminal case (Prestbury Police Station CAS 33/02/2001) was opened against Mr
Ngubo for contravening Section 48A(a) of the Correctional Services Act No.8 of
1959 for unauthorised removal of prisoners from prison without lawful authority. No
arrest had been made at the time of writing this report.
275

normal procedures were not followed. On several occasions Mr Ngubo
reportedly tried to gain access to the prison area in his private vehicle without
permission.
Several witnesses testified that a number of Mr Ngubo’s relatives were
employed at the prison. Many of these were employed at the time of
Operation Quiet Storm. Several members were given accommodation at the
staff quarters as a result of being close to Mr Ngubo. In addition, Mr Ngubo
also used several people who had been employed by the Department of
Correctional Services as his bodyguards. 27
5.1.2 Mr Thamsanqa Obedient Memela
At the time of writing Mr Thamsanqa (Thami) Memela was sentenced together
with Mr Ngubo, for the murder of Impendle IFP leader Nash Protus Ngubane.
Mr Memela submitted to the Department two (2) matric certificates, one in
1997 and the other in 2000. The Commission heard evidence that neither
matric certificate of Mr Memela was issued by a recognised Examination
Board and they were therefore invalid. The Commission recommended in its
Fourth Interim Report that Mr Memela be suspended immediately pending the
outcome of the disciplinary inquiry against him, be charged with two counts of
fraud in terms of the Department’s Disciplinary Code and be charged
criminally with two counts of fraud and that the records of the Commission’s
proceedings in respect of Mr Memela be sent to the Director of Public
Prosecutions of KwaZulu-Natal to facilitate criminal proceedings against him.
Mr Memela was dismissed from the Department of Correctional Services on 5
August 2004. At the time of writing he was on suspension pending the
finalisation of his appeal.
27
The Assistant Head of Prisons at Pietermaritzburg Prison, Mr Vusumuzi Jeoffrey
Ndlovu, told the Commission that one of Mr Ngubo’s bodyguards who had stayed
with Mr Ngubo in his Pietermaritzburg Prison accommodation was subsequently
arrested for murder along with Mr Ngubo.
276

According to the evidence, Mr Memela was one of the most trusted
lieutenants of Mr Ngubo.
5.1.3 Mr Nhanhla Charles Ndumo
According to evidence, Mr Nhlanhla Charles Ndumo was appointed as Head
of Prison for Pietermaritzburg, but changed his appointment to that of Head of
Human Resources in the province. This followed a discussion within Popcru
ranks to get him to be appointed as Head of Human Resources as part of a
concerted effort to ensure that he be in charge of recruitment and human
resource matters to achieve the aims of the union. Mr Ndumo was initially
responsible for the recruitment of entry-level staff, but a further delegation of
power allowed him to appoint people up to senior correctional officer level.
Mr Ndumo’s appointment never followed due process in that the position had
not been advertised, there had been no interviews and the appointment had
not been sanctioned by Head Office. He still occupies the same position.
Mr Ndumo was regarded by many as Mr Ngubo’s right hand man. He is cited
in the Natal Witness of 5 March 1999 as Provincial Human Resources
Manager for the Department of Correctional Services. This is in accordance
with the allocation of portfolios by Popcru as testified to by Mr Ntuli. The
affidavit prepared by Mr Ntuli and handed to the Commission 28 states that Mr
Ndumo was chosen to take over personnel and “deal with such sensitive
matters as appointments, recruitment and promotions”. It was discovered
subsequently, however, that Mr Ndumo did not have the necessary
qualifications or experience for the position.
28
Durban Exhibit ‘QQ’.
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5.2 Mrs Thandiwe Kgosidintsi
Mrs Thandiwe Kgosidintsi joined the Department of Correctional Services as
Chief Deputy Commissioner in charge of Resource Management based at the
National Office with effect from 1 January 1998. The Minister of Correctional
Services at the time was Dr Sipo Mzimela and the National Commissioner, Dr
Khulekani Sithole. Prior to joining the Department Mrs Kgosidintsi worked as
Chief Director Corporate Services in the Department of Land Affairs, and had
previously worked for the Constitutional Assembly and the Free State
government.
Mrs Kgosidintsi had battles with the Minister and Commissioner relating to
which government department should build and pay for prisons and award
contracts for the building of prisons and the installation of security systems in
prisons. The Minister and Commissioner wanted the Department of
Correctional Services to acquire the power rather than the Department of
Public Works. Mrs Kgosidintsi disagreed and as a result she fell out of favour.
While in Pretoria Mrs Kgosidintsi compiled a report detailing her concerns with
the Department of Correctional Services and sent it to the Office of then
Deputy President, Mr Thabo Mbeki. She said that it became obvious within a
couple of weeks that Dr Sithole knew she had submitted the report, which was
also published in the Mail & Guardian under the headline “Jail boss in soccer
scam”.
Mrs Kgosidintsi told the Commission that the report was concerned with a
crisis of leadership in the Department. She said there was no clear political
leadership from the Minister and as a result the Commissioner had too much
power. She stated that people were hired by the Department but played
soccer for a club owned by Commissioner Sithole; people were transferred at
whim; and that there was a culture of absenteeism among top management.
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As a result she was transferred as Provincial Commissioner to KwaZulu-Natal,
where she was humiliated because she was not from the province, because
she was a woman and because the people who controlled the province
refused to accept her. She was also charged departmentally for submitting the
report to the Office of the Deputy President.
Mrs Kgosidintsi told the Commission that the former Provincial Commissioner,
Mr Ntoni, did not meet her on the first day of her appointment on 1 December
1998 and no one seemed to be assigned to welcome her. She described her
reception as thoroughly hostile. Within a few days of her appointment she met
with some members of Popcru and was told that she was not welcome and
should go back to Pretoria.
As a result, Mrs Kgosidintsi was put on sick leave for two weeks. On her
return she met with management and was again told that she was not wanted
in KwaZulu-Natal. Members of the leadership of the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal
also met with her and said that she would never be able to manage the
province and that she should return to Pretoria. Mrs Kgosidintsi said she
found the meeting aggressive, nasty and not very friendly or constructive.
Mrs Kgosidintsi told the Commission that she attended a meeting of senior
staff from the Department in KwaZulu-Natal in January 1999 where the
discussion was concerned with her appointment. The following day she was in
her office when she was confronted by about thirty two (32) people who
verbally abused her, spat on her and said that she should go back to Pretoria.
She said some of the people were wearing Popcru T-Shirts or insignia. She
was pushed out of her chair, made to kneel down and told to be respectful.
One person urinated on the carpet in her office and she saw subsequently
that someone defaecated on the carpet in the office of Mr M.G. Buthelezi.
Some of the people were armed but they did not use their weapons. Ms
Kgotsidintsi said the hostage situation lasted about three to four hours. As she
was leaving the Correctional Services building, one member of the
Department shouted through the window that if she did not listen her daughter
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Mbali would be raped. Ms Kgosidintsi reported the incident to the police, but
was not aware of any criminal prosecution. In addition, the Department did not
institute an internal disciplinary hearing.
However, in an application by the Minister of Correctional Services and the
Commissioner of Correctional Services, an interdict was sought against Mr
Ngubo and thirty three (33) other persons restraining them from assaulting
and harassing Mrs Kgosidintsi and other people in the Department. The
Commission heard that the interdict had been granted in the first instance on
the basis that a rule nisi was granted with a return date, but on the return date
the Judge ruled that only the Labour Court had jurisdiction in the matter.
After Mrs Kgosidintsi was attacked she was called by Ms Thuthukile Bhengu 29
and asked to attend a meeting on a Sunday evening at the guesthouse where
Ms Bhengu was staying. Mr Ngubo and Mr Ndumo were also there. Mrs
Kgosidintsi said that she was told in no uncertain terms that she was not
wanted in KwaZulu-Natal and that she should not try to live on the premises of
Correctional Services because her life would be at stake. She was advised to
either go back to Pretoria or take six (6) months’ stress leave.
The following day when Mrs Kgosidintsi returned to her office she found two
members sitting on her desk. She put down her bag and rushed to the
boardroom because she was late for the management meeting. There she
found Ms Bhengu chairing the meeting and saying that she was the Acting
Provincial Commissioner after being appointed by Commissioner Sithole. 30
However, Mrs Kgosidintsi continued to return to the office.
On 9 February 1999, the Minister attended a meeting in Newcastle where the
management board and union leaders discussed their grievances. The
following day Mrs Kgosidintsi held a staff meeting to report back and to
29
30
Ms Thuthukile Bhengu was in charge of Human Resource Management in the
KwaZulu-Natal provincial office of the Department of Correctional Services at the
time that Ms Kgotsidintsi was appointed as the KwaZulu-Natal Provincial
Commissioner.
Ms Bhengu was murdered by two colleagues in 2001.
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strategise. However, she told the Commission that the Popcru group that had
been at Newcastle the previous day arrived and questioned why she was not
taking them seriously when they told her repeatedly to leave. They then frogmarched
her out of the room. The Commissioner decided that she should stay
at home for a week, and then instructed her to work from an office in Durban.
However, Popcru members were there when she arrived. After this incident
Mrs Kgosidintsi did not return to work and Mr Steven Korabie was
subsequently posted to KwaZulu-Natal as Acting Provincial Commissioner. 31
In the meantime, Commissioner Sithole had announced an internal
investigation into the conduct of Mrs Kgosidintsi. The alleged transgressions
related to the report sent to the Deputy President as well as several others.
Dr Sithole also said in a media statement responding to an article in the Mail
& Guardian that he was going to give Mrs Kgosidintsi two (2) days to
persuade him that she ought not to be suspended. Despite his statements,
she heard nothing from him in this regard.
She did, however, face a disciplinary inquiry in March 1999 and was given a
written warning for two of the transgressions, inter alia, bringing the
Department into disrepute by writing the report that was sent to the Deputy
President. Mrs Kgosidintsi told the Commission that the recorded part of the
inquiry was carried out professionally, but off the record the prosecutor
reprimanded and abused her. She said that she was questioned why she
asked whites to defend her and it was said to her that she was a loser and a
failure.
31
In a report in KwaZulu-Natal Briefing, No. 15 June/July 1999, Mrs Kgosidintsi is
quoted as saying that there was no clear demarcation between management and
Popcru and that Popcru’s national leadership had tried and failed to bring its
provincial branch to order. “In March, after one of the incidents involving
Kgosidintsi, the national leadership of Popcru suspended the entire provincial
leadership and attempted to form an interim structure. But gun-wielding union
members are reported to have disrupted a meeting demanding the reinstatement of
their suspended officials.”
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Mrs Kgosidintsi was subsequently informed that the National Commissioner
could no longer work with her because he did not trust her. She resigned and
took a package upon leaving the Department.
6. INTIMIDATION
The Commission heard evidence from a number of people who claimed that
intimidation played a major role in making the Pietermaritzburg Prison
ungovernable. Attacks and incidents that were mentioned included:
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)
(e)
(f)
(g)
(h)
(i)
(j)
Shots fired through the windows of Mr I.N. Zondi’s house.
Mr N.S. Mkhize’s house shot at and windows damaged.
Mr D.K. Mbanjwa, a senior member in the prison, shot by unknown
persons in Pietermaritzburg.
Mr S.L. Jacobs shot dead within the prison premises. He was off duty
and at home at the time.
Mr S. Mkhize killed next to his home in Edendale, Pietermaritzburg.
Mr L.W. Ngcobo killed mysteriously at the prison gate in an incident
that some claimed was suicide.
Ms Thuthukile Bhengu assassinated by colleagues in the prison
premises. 32
Mr T.R. Dlamini killed after leaving work.
Mr M.S. Lerumo, who was an initiator in many disciplinary hearings,
received a threatening letter.
Mr Eugene Petrus Claasen assaulted by five members after he found
them consuming liquor in the prison premises while they were on duty
in December 1997. He was medically boarded in November 1999.
32
Two Pietermaritzburg Prison warders were sentenced in June 2002 to life
imprisonment for the murder of Ms Bhengu. Mr Mlungisi Dlamini and Mr Lucky
Mpungose were found guilty on the evidence of two accomplices, Mr Baba Majola
and Mr Nkululeko Maphanga. The Natal Witness of 22 June 2002 states that Ms
Bhengu’s assassination was planned after she refused to consider the employment of
Mr Mpungose’s financée, allegedly as a result of a fraudulent job application.
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(k) Mr T. Dladla killed for going to work while other members were on
strike.
(l) Mr B.S. Mthethwa shot and crippled.
(m) Mr M.G. Buthelezi attacked and assaulted in his office during working
hours.
(n) Mr P.M. Ntuli prevented from coming to work for about twelve (12)
months and placed under special protection with his family. 33
It needs to be stated that the Area Manager, Mr Makhaye, was also
intimidated and assaulted by Mr Ngubo.
Mr Claasen, mentioned in (j) above, told the Commission that he was hit with
a long iron bar and broke his arm during the incident. He was transferred to
Westville Prison after the incident and suffered from insomnia, nightmares and
could no longer trust other members. No disciplinary inquiry was held and a
decision was taken not to prosecute criminally because one of the members
who assaulted Mr Claasen committed suicide and it was believed that all the
blame would be put on that member. The members argued that they reacted
to Mr Claasen in self-defence.
7. DISCIPLINE
The Commission heard a lot of evidence about disciplinary hearings and how
they were carried out at the Pietermaritzburg Prison.
As a result of the incidents of intimidation as set out above, the Commission
heard that managers are scared of hearing disciplinary cases and
investigators are also threatened. 34
33
34
See Pietermaritzburg Exhibit ‘A’ pages 10 –11.
For more details see the Chapter dealing with Disciplinary Inquiries.
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Absenteeism was a significant problem within the Pietermaritzburg Prison,
and according to Mr Mchunu, members are regularly absent and disciplinary
action is seldom taken against them.
8. RECRUITMENT
The Commission heard about a number of irregularities in recruitment
procedures, in particular the significant number of employees of the
Department of Correctional Services who were related to one another. An
affidavit, which was part of a CCMA hearing, states that the deponent was at
a meeting where an official from the Public Servants Association questioned
the relevance of holding interviews for posts when the appointees had already
been identified. The official offered to predict specific appointments due to be
made and wrote down the names and placed them in a sealed envelope in
the presence of an official from the Department of Correctional Services.
When the envelope was opened after the interviews were conducted, it was
found that four of the five posts had been filled, and the union official had
predicted all four appointees correctly.
Nepotism is a major problem in the Management Area. One member testified
that he had eight family members who were all fellow employees. 35
9. PROMOTIONS AND MERIT AWARDS
The issue of promotions and merit awards caused a lot of conflict in this
Management Area. It exacerbated the tension between managers and
affected the inter- personal relationship between managers in general. 36
35
36
See evidence of Mr Pather, Pietermaritzburg Volume 33, at page 3 215. Also see Ms
Kgosidintsi’s evidence Pietermaritzburg Transcript Volume 13 at page 1 118.
See also Pietermaritzburg Exhibit ‘L4’ and ‘L5’ and also the Chapter dealing with
Recruitment for more details.
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10. THE PRISON HOSPITAL
The Commission heard evidence about the operations of the Pietermaritzburg
Prison Hospital, which had been substantially renovated at a cost of R4 million
to R5 million and equipped at a cost of R1.5 million. The new facility, which
contained one hundred and twenty (120) beds, had not been used since it
opened several years before the Commission held its hearings in
Pietermaritzburg. According to the evidence put before the Commission this
was because of a shortage of nursing personnel.
Concerns were raised about the nurses who had been employed by the
Department but were no longer performing their functions, if they even came
to work at all. Mr Mchunu said that he thought several of the nurses were sick
and four of them were not at work at all.
In the meantime a significant number of warders was being used to escort
prisoners to external hospitals when they needed medical treatment. Two
warders are required to escort a maximum prisoner and an average of
between three and five maximum prisoners were taken to outside hospitals
daily, according to the Head of External Custody at Pietermaritzburg Prison,
Mr Morgan Naidoo. Should prisoners be admitted to hospital, maximum
prisoners required two members per shift and a medium prisoner one per shift
on guard for twenty four (24) hours a day. Mr Naidoo said that there are on
average between eight (8) and ten (10) prisoners in hospital on a particular
day.
In addition to the number of warders required, there are other financial
implications. Mr Naidoo told the Commission that the Department pays about
R100 per consultation for prisoners and R600 a day for an overnight stay.
One prisoner stayed in hospital for eleven (11) months because he required a
major operation on his knee at a cost to the Department of R168 908.
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It is difficult to determine the cost to the State of continuing to take prisoners
to external health facilities. However, perhaps one can consider the costs in
the following manner.
If an average of eight prisoners are taken to the hospital on any particular day:
• Six (6) of these require a consultation at a cost of R100 each = R600.
• Two (2) require an overnight stay at a cost of R600 each = R1 200.
• Four (4) of the prisoners are maximum security prisoners and require
the services of two warders as escorts. The warders are earning the
minimum annual salary for a Correctional Officer of R49 227 (salary
structure for 2005). The daily rate of these eight officers is about
R190 each = R1 520.
• The remaining prisoners are not maximum security and require only
one warder as an escort. The cost is based on the same rate of R190
per day = R760.
• The twelve (12) Correctional Officers would all receive a monthly
allowance of R200 for working in a prison. This works out to a daily
rate of about R9 each for twelve (12) officers = R108.
• The eight (8) Correctional Officers who are working with maximum
category prisoners would get paid an additional allowance of R300
per month. This works out to a daily rate of about R14 each for the
eight (8) officers = R112.
• The prisoners are all transported to the hospital by one driver who is
also a Correctional Officer earning the minimum salary = R190.
On the basis of these figures, the daily cost to the State is R4 490. In fact, the
cost is more than likely far higher when one considers that the highest earning
Correctional Officer would be earning about R400 per day instead of the R190
used for the purposes of these calculations.
As a result of the evidence led, the Commission directed those responsible in
the Department of Correctional Services in KwaZulu-Natal to come up with a
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plan to open the hospital facility and put it to best use within a short space of
time.
Mr King Khumalo, who was employed as the Provincial Co-ordinator of
Nursing Services for the Department in KwaZulu-Natal, subsequently told the
Commission that the first floor of the hospital had been opened and that the
other two floors were to remain closed for only another five months. His
testimony was that nine (9) nurses in the Pietermaritzburg area had been
redeployed to the hospital.
11. PRISONERS’ ASSAULTED BY WARDERS
The Commission heard testimony from three (3) prisoners who claimed to
have been assaulted by warders on 11 April 2000. The prisoners were all
members of the 26 Gang and the alleged incident occurred after a fight with
other prisoners.
Although the Commission heard evidence from the prisoners and the warders
it was difficult to draw conclusions about the incidents because neither the
prisoners nor the warders seemed to provide the Commission with a truthful
account. There is medical evidence to support the claim by the prisoners that
they were assaulted. However, the circumstances around the assault made it
difficult to determine culpability.
On the basis of his own version, the Commission found that Mr Elphas
Mkhize, the Head of the Maximum Prison, had exceeded the reasonable force
limit necessary to quell a riot.
Thus the Commission was of the view that it would recommend that the
Department should institute disciplinary proceedings against him for the
aforesaid transgression. 37
37
See specific recommendations under Recommendations of Management Areas.
287