Tensions between the State Security Agency's (SSA) director general, Thembi Majola, and Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni have boiled over, with the country's top spy reportedly in the process of quitting.
Although the presidency has denied that Majola has resigned, sources close to the ministry told the Mail & Guardian that she had decided to do so over the deterioration of their relationship.
This comes at the height of renewed attacks on trucks around the country, described by President Cyril Ramaphosa as economic sabotage, and which appear to have continued to catch South Africa's intelligence community off guard.
Three high-profile insiders in the security cluster have told the M&G that the relationship between the two intelligence leaders has been strained for months and that Majola had been considering vacating her office for some time.
Majola was appointed as head of the SSA in February last year.
The SSA has widely been deemed ineffectual and beset by factionalism since the administration of former president Jacob Zuma, with allegations being made at the Zondo commission on state capture of a parallel intelligence agency being established to benefit Zuma and his political cronies.
The agency was also severely criticised in the high-level review panel report of 2018 and, most recently, in the report of the presidential panel that was established to investigate the July 2021 riots.
"The appointment of ambassador Thembi Majola to this position is an important part of our work to stabilise the country's intelligence services. Her extensive experience in government, international relations and security makes her well placed to lead the reform and rebuilding of the State Security Agency," Ramaphosa said at the time.
Majola's appointment had been expected to give greater impetus to the implementation of the report of the SSA high-level review panel and the recommendations of the expert