NO PRIDE IN PRETENCE’: POLICE SING THEIR OWN PRAISES FOR UK WHILE AFRICANS SUFFER UNPROTECTED AT HOME

By Shelton Muchena
International Correspondent in England | 12 July 2026

 

When Ndodana Mkhanyisi Tshuma was arrested in Kensington, Johannesburg, last Friday wanted for the brutal murders of his wife Nothabo and daughters Natalie and Nala in Bedfordshire South African Police Service (SAPS) spokespeople wasted no time. They hailed “operational excellence”, “unmatched coordination”, and declared “South Africa is no place to hide”. They name‑checked “Interpol and our own teams” as if they were one and the same.

But the claim rings hollow. It is also misleading. And it exposes a stark, shameful double standard: when London calls, the system moves mountains; when African victims scream for help on their own streets, the same service stands aside.

Interpol is not a division of SAPS. It is an international coordination body it issues no arrest warrants, commands no officers, and runs no operations. It simply passed the UK’s Red Notice and evidence to Pretoria. Tshuma fled the UK on 4 July; the Red Notice only landed on 9 July; he moved freely for days before being picked up once the paperwork finally cleared. That is not “superior policing” it is acting only once the world is watching.

And all this boasting comes days after the country saw exactly the opposite reality:

- In Germiston, two Mozambican citizens were shot dead and others displaced in mob raids; police confirmed deaths but offered little visible protection beforehand.
- In Durban, a man died jumping from an eighth‑floor window while hiding from vigilantes; police said nothing about stopping the pursuit that forced him to run.
- Across Alexandra, Hillbrow and Pretoria, groups broke into homes, dragged out residents including legal permit holders and assaulted them in broad daylight. Witnesses reported officers observing without intervening, or turning away victims seeking shelter.
- More than 25 000 people have been displaced; dozens hospitalised; many remain too afraid to return.

“This is not a force that ‘denies safe haven’ it chooses who deserves one,” said a Hillbrow community organiser. “If Britain wants a man, they are fast and loud. If we are being beaten on our own pavement, we are invisible.”

Critics say the rush to claim credit is less about justice and more about currying favour with the UK and repairing South Africa’s global standing a bid to deflect from mounting criticism of border failures and rising xenophobic violence.

No one disputes Tshuma must face justice. But it is dishonest and deeply insulting to parade one operation as proof of competence, while law and order collapses for those who cannot call on foreign embassies to speak for them.

SAPs can only claim to be “world‑class” when they protect every person in South Africa not just the ones the world demands they catch. Until then, these statements are not pride they are pretence.