Cape Town – A Mpumalanga traffic officer who challenged his dismissal at the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitrations (CCMA) has reportedly lost his bid to keep his job.
Gift Hleza went to the CCMA following his dismissal by the Msukaligwa (Ermelo) local municipality after he accepted a R200 bribe.
According to IOL, Hleza was charged with corruption and released on R1 500 bail after being arrested by the Hawks in January 2020.
At the CCMA, the senior traffic officer, 33, alleged that he took the R200 because he needed to buy a cool drink as it had been a hot day, the report said.
However, the CCMA found Hleza’s version to be dubious and the commissioner ruled that his dismissal was fair.
The commissioner said the only inference that could be drawn was Hleza wanted payment in kind, reported Times Live.
In July, an Eastern Cape police officer was arrested for taking a R200 bribe from a suspected drug dealer.
According to Lieutenant Colonel Nqobile Gwala, while the team was busy with their operation, they notice an unknown male leaning through the police vehicle window and handing something over to the passenger, reported SowetanLive.
Police moved towards the police vehicle “but upon seeing the team approaching, the member in the passenger seat threw something out the window”, the report said.
The 39-year-old Sergeant was confronted and arrested for corruption and defeating the ends of justice after a R200 note he was suspected to have thrown out was found from a drain, said Gwala.
The unknown male who had given the Sergeant the R200 was found in possession of drugs.
In another incident, a Mpumalanga Warrant Officer was arrested in October as he tried to collect a R500 000 bribe from a mining deal.
According to a police statement, the anti-corruption unit had set up an entrapment for the corrupt warrant officer who had demanded a R500 000 bribe from a civilian.
Police said the civilian alerted police and the anti-corruption unit set up a trap for the corrupt officer and he was subsequently arrested.
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Compiled by Olwethu Mpeshe
