South Africa: Minister Signs Scorpions Death Warrant

Cape Town — Despite a torrent of opposition criticism of the African National Congress's (ANC's) decision to disband the Scorpions, members of President Thabo Mbeki's cabinet have confirmed that the elite unit will be disbanded and a new unit formed under South African Police Service (SAPS) auspices.

In the opening salvos of the debate on Mbeki's s tate of the nation speech, almost every opposition speaker told the president that the Scorpions should be retained in their present form. It then fell to Safety and Security Minister Charles Nqakula to confirm that the government would give effect to the resolution of the ANC's December conference to disband the unit.

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