Cele 'a little bit disturbed' to see reports claiming he was unwilling to cooperate with ad hoc committee

Former Police Minister Bheki Cele said he was disturbed when he saw media reports claiming he was not willing to cooperate with the Parliament ad hoc committee investigating police corruption.

Cele is giving evidence on the first day of his testimony before the ad hoc committee on Thursday.

His testimony is expected to focus on organised crime syndicates, the failure of organs of state, his own experience with MPs, as well as allegations regarding classified information.

Cele told the committee he has always cooperated with the parliamentary inquiry and at no stage did he snub the committee and its evidence leaders.

He said that he even paid for his own travel to attend consultations with the evidence leaders in Cape Town. 

"I was a little bit disturbed when the media said I’m not cooperating, especially one of the KZN papers. It had a big headline that 'Cele snubs the ad hoc committee'. I have never done that. Even the first cooperation, I came here with my own finances, my own ticket, my everything, but I still came here for consultation."