Africa-Press – South-Africa. Police Minister Bheki Cele says the actions of axed Western Cape head of detectives Jeremy Vearey on Facebook were “not only irresponsible, reckless, damaging and disrespectful, but also inconsiderate as it showed a culture of impunity on his part.”
Cele made the comments in his response to a written Parliamentary question by EFF MP Henry Shembeni.
Shembeni asked what Cele’s reasons were for dismissing Vearey.
It was found that the detective boss had brought the SAPS into disrepute via his post on the social media platform.
“This specific factor, in my view, aggravates matters for the employee. It is worth mentioning that the employee had posted messages, comments and images, online, via his Facebook account, eight times. This specific fact points to the state of mind or attitude on the part of the employee, at the time and in my view, indicates that the intention of the employee was deliberate,” Cele said.
The police minister further impressed upon the fact that these posts, which he described as “negative”, put the SAPS in a “bad light”, and were seen by Vearey’s Facebook friends.
Cele stated that Vearey also failed to show remorse for his deeds. “This particular aspect indicates that the employee is refusing to step up, own up and take responsibility for his own actions.
“The refusal of the employee to take responsibility for his own action, even when the facts of this case clearly concentrate that his deeds were in contravention of the SAPS Disciplinary Regulations, in my considered view, demonstrate that the employee is not a good candidate for rehabilitation,” said Cele.
“The employee’s conduct was not only irresponsible, reckless, disrespectful, and damaging, but was also inconsiderate and it has demonstrated a culture of impunity on his part,” he added.
Last month Vearey vowed to fight his dismissal “until the last drop of blood”, after he noted the ruling by the arbitrator for the Safety and Security Sectoral Bargaining Council (SSSBC) to uphold his dismissal.
The SSSBC found that his axing was “substantively fair” and was the only sanction that could be imposed, given the circumstances.
Political Bureau
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