McBride to head SSA's foreign branch

SA President Cyril Ramaphosa has appointed controversial former Independent Police Investigations Directorate (Ipid) head Robert McBride as the new boss of the State Security Agency (SSA)foreign branch. TimesLIVE notes the agency announced the three-year appointment on Thursday, with Security Minister Ayanda Dlodlo welcoming the move. Dlodlo expressed confidence in McBride's appointment, noting his wealth of experience which ranged from the metro police to heading the police watchdog unit. ‘The work to implement the recommendations of the high level panel on the State Security Agency is proceeding steadily and this appointment is one of the critical steps towards the journey to rebuild the agency,’ said Dlodlo. The position means McBride will direct SA’s intelligence gathering outside the country’s borders. McBride, who served as the chief of the metropolitan police for Ekurhuleni and later executive director of Ipid, is no stranger to controversy. His 2014 appointment to head Ipid by Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa was met with some resistance as McBride was known to have been part of the 1986 Umkhonto we Sizwe group that bombed the Magoos restaurant in Durban where three people were killed and 69 injured. In January, Police Minister Bheki Cele informed McBride that he would not be renewing or extending his contract as Ipid head.