In a country with soaring gender-based violence statistics, I find it very concerning that the police minister would show such disregard for the potential impact on Thabo Bester's victims.

The "Bonnie and Clyde" story of Facebook rapist and murderer Thabo Bester and celebrity doctor Nandipha Magudumana has gripped the nation as it has played out in a theatrical and jaw-dropping fashion.

I won't go into detail about each salacious episode. What I do want to look at is the inquiry launched by the parliamentary Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services, particularly the terse exchange between member of Parliament Glynnis Breytenbach and Police Minister Bheki Cele.

"It's an absolute disgrace that the victims of this man were not warned, were not prepared, were not protected," Breytenbach fired at Cele. "It's an absolute disgrace and you should hang your head in shame, all of you. It's no way to treat people.

"But the most important thing, answer me this: while you were so busy protecting the secrecy of your investigation and deciding not to warn the South African public, who incidentally expect all of us here to protect them and all of us here have failed them, if Bester had murdered another woman, raped another woman, what would you have said then?" she asked.

Cele answered glibly: "Well, I'm not a speculator. That has not happened. And secondly, I...