SAPS, Independent Police Investigative Directorate, Private Security Industry Regulatory Authority & Civilian Secretariat for Police 2015 Budget: analysis & hearings with Deputy Minister

Meeting report

Chairperson's Opening Comments
The Chairperson welcomed the Deputy Minister, Ms Maggie Sotyu. In the next three weeks, the Committee would focus on the budgets of the SA Police Service (SAPS), the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID), the Private Security Industry Regulator (PSIRA) and the Civilian Secretariat for Police (CSP). 11% of the country’s budget was allocated to police so it was very important from an oversight perspective that the Committee did proper analysis, evaluation and introspection of where things were. The Committee would especially focus on leadership of the entities and SAPS itself to ensure the necessary outputs were realised. The purpose of today’s meeting was to get a perspective from civil society because 11% was spent on safety and security so the views and experiences of civil society were needed to discuss challenges and especially solutions from the different vantage points. The policing unions represented over 200 000 people so it was important to get their critical views. The Committee was pressed for time given the possibility of load shedding and the meeting venue would be affected at 14h00 and there was no back-up generator. The time available would need to be used wisely. It was anticipated that the Committee’s Budgetary Review and Recommendation Report (BRRR) would be adopted by 6 May 2015.

Parliamentary Budget Office: Vote 23 – Police 2015 Budget Analysis
Ms Nelia Orlandi, Policy Analyst: Parliamentary Budget Office, provided an independent analysis of the 2015 Budget of the Department of Police. The performance analysis focused on the relevance of selected performance indicators for oversight and the alignment to the Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) outcomes. The budget analysis focused on the alignment of the medium term estimates with previous outcomes and government priorities. It further identified risks to the 2015 budget. Her performance analysis showed that most of the performance indicators and targets presented in the 2015 Budget were output driven and reflected statistical data. Performance indicators and targets reflecting the efficiency and effectiveness of the Department should be considered. The selected performance indicators in the 2015 Budget were not totally aligned to the indicators and targets of the MTSF. The main cost drivers for the Department was compensation of employees, computer services, fuel, oil and gas, operating leases and machinery and equipment. Medium term expenditure estimates were in several instances not based on actual outcomes. Medium term estimates on selected items showed willingness to implement cost containment measures. Actual expenditure outcomes, however, showed the contrary. To align the budget with the MTSF, expenditure on training and development, computer services and infrastructure development should be prioritised.

Turning to the focus areas of the Department, the purpose of the police was to prevent, combat and investigate crime, maintain public order, protect and secure the inhabitants of SA and their property, and uphold and enforce the law. Priorities of the 2015 Budget included:
- Creating an enabling environment for the Department’s core functions
- Strengthening the criminal justice system
- Facilitating community participation and building partnerships
- Enhancing the safety of women and children; and
- Professionalising the police service.

Selected key performance indicators with targets to measure the performance on the priorities were presented in the estimates of national expenditure for the Department of the Police. The performance indicators mainly reflected statistical information or outputs. Performance indicators and targets should ideally reflect and measure efficiency and effectiveness of a Department. Such indictors and targets would assist oversight bodies to monitor the efficiency and effectiveness of the Department. The results of customer satisfaction surveys were one example of a source to provide performance information on the effectiveness of the service. Most of the targets were based on average outcomes, except for the number of network operations conducted, which were based on planned operations. Good practice, however, was to utilise a baseline to guide target setting. The police further had to implement specific sub-outcomes and component actions to ensure that all people in SA were and feel safe (in terms of NDP Outcome 3) as included in the medium term strategic framework. It was therefore expected from departments to align their performance indicators and targets with the indicators and targets of the MTSF. An example for possible alignment is: the increase in the detection rate for contact crime from 62% in 2014/15 to 66% was one of the indicators for measuring the implementation of an effective crime combating strategy and actions for contact crime in the MTSF.

Ms Orlandi then presented an overview of the expenditure trends and estimates noting the expenditure analysis provided an assessment of the consolidated 2015 budget of the police.

Expenditure outcomes show that the Department had the capacity to spend. The total medium term expenditure estimates grow by 6% on average over the medium term. Growth trends of the programmes were between 5.8 and 7.4%. Expenditure trends to note were the constant under expenditure, on the adjusted estimates, of between 2.4% and 5.7% within Administration. This programme continued to increase by 5.8 per cent, on average, over the MTEF. Detection Services over spent by 1.1% in 2012/13 and 2013/14, the estimates for 2014/15 were, however, revised downwards by almost 1 per cent. This budget increased by 3.7% from the actual outcome in 2013/14. Protection and Security Services over spent by 2.7% in 2013/14 and increased further by 3.6% in 2014/15 and 7.1% over the medium term.

The Department indicated that estimated expenditure over the MTEF are reduced on non-core goods and services items. These items include advertising, communication, and consultancy services, and on payments for capital assets, specifically on transport equipment in 2016/17. The reduction on transport equipment was consistent with a decision taken in the 2014 budget to limit budget increases on transport equipment to levels that can be sustained over the medium term. The lifespan of the Department’s current vehicles will be extended, and only obsolete vehicles will be replaced. R400 million in 2017/18 was reallocated to the Department for replacing obsolete vehicles. The main cost drivers for the Department was compensation of employees, computer services, fuel, oil and gas, operating leases and machinery and equipment. Expenditure outcomes showed constant over or under expenditure on specific items. These outcomes should provide a baseline for future estimated expenditure. In some instances the medium term estimates have been based on the actual outcomes to provide credible numbers. The compensation of employees estimated expenditure grew by 6.2% over the medium term. Historic trends, however, showed growth of 8.8 per cent. It should be noted that the targets set in the MTSF to ensure domestic stability required from the Department to appoint 9 500 additional personnel to achieve the targets set for 2018/19. Training had been identified as one of the priorities of the Department of Police specifically for Visible Policing as well as for outcome 3 of the NDP. Past trends showed that expenditure estimates for Bursaries for employees and Training and development had continuously been over spent by between 34.7 and 113.9 per cent. An amount of R7 million had been spent on bursaries in 2013/14, while only R3.4 million had been estimated for 2014/15. This estimate grew by 5% over the MTEF to reach R3.9 million in 2017/18. The same phenomena were true for training and development. Strengthening the criminal justice system required the implementation of the systems integration project. This project involved the upgrade and expansion of the information technology of the Department of Police. Expenditure for this priority was included in the computer services estimates of the Department. Actual expenditure outcomes between 2011/12 and 2013/14 show under expenditure of between 14.6 and 32.1 per cent. Revised estimates for 2014/15 were further reduced by 6.5% to R2 747.2 million. This amount was estimated to grow by 5.1% over the MTEF. Fuel, oil and gas, as one of the cost drivers for providing policing services, had constantly over spent on the estimated budgets. In 2013/14 the actual expenditure on this item amounted to R2 652.9 million. The estimated expenditure for 2014/15 was, however, R2 197.1 million. The Department estimated that this amount will increase to R2 654.4 million in 2017/18. The reduction in the estimated expenditure on non-core goods and services, including estimates for expenditure on consultants and professional services, was acknowledged. It was, however, noted that over-expenditure of between 4.0 and 50.5% had realised on these items in the 2013/14 financial year. The slow growth in estimated expenditure on consultants and professional services might pose a risk to this budget. Expenditure on catering for departmental activities and venues and facilities was another example of constant over expenditure, while growing the MTEF by only 4.8 and 4.3% respectively. Efficiency gains in terms of cost containment measures, however, were recommended by the National Treasury on the latter items. The Department continually under spent on buildings and other fixed structures. This slow spending was a concern that needs further investigation. The provisioning of relevant infrastructure for rendering a victim friendly service at 86% of police stations was a priority to be reached by 2017/18.

Ms Orlandi then took the Committee through the Department programmes:
Programme 1: Administration. She stated that Sub-programme 3: Corporate Services drove expenditure in the Administration programme. The main cost drivers were compensation of employees, computer services and payments for capital assets. Some of the estimates that might pose a risk to the Administration budget were advertising and transfers to households. The actual outcome for advertising was R24 122 million in 2013/14. The estimated expenditure on this item had been reduced over the medium term to R17 169 million in 2014/15 and it grew on average by 4.7% over the MTEF. This might pose a risk for recruiting the 9 500 additional personnel to ensure domestic stability (sub-outcome 5 of MTSF) and professionalising the police service. The estimated expenditure on the transfers to households had grown by 21.4% between 2011/12 and 2014/15. It was, however, estimated that this item will only grow by 3.6% over the medium term, which might not be sufficient. The budget for buildings and other fixed structures was centralised within this programme. Constant under spending on this item resulted in the shifting of funds to Compensation of Employees, over the medium term.

Programme 2: Visible Policing. Here, sub-programme 1: Crime Prevention drove expenditure in the Visible Policing programme. The main cost drivers were compensation of employees, fuel, oil and gas and operating leases. Expenditure estimates for all the cost drivers posed a risk to the 2015 budget. The actual outcome for fuel, oil and gas was R1 452 032 million in 2013/14. The estimated expenditure on this item had been reduced over the medium term to R1 117 006 million in 2014/15 and was estimated to reach R1 403 480 million in 2017/18, which was less than the actual spending in 2013/14. The expenditure on operating leases grows by 4.3% over the medium term, while growth of 9.3% realised over the previous three year period. More than 50% of the personnel are within the Visible Policing programme. It was therefore important to ensure credible personnel numbers and compensation of employees’ estimates. An analysis of the personnel numbers showed a shift in numbers from levels 7-10, while the numbers in levels 1-6 increased. This shift, in general, was in contradiction to current practices in the rest of the public service. The compensation of employees’ expenditure estimates increased by 5.9% over the medium term. This only allowed for increases for Improvement Of Conditions Of Services (ICS) and not for the increase in personnel numbers, such as the target of 9 500 additional personnel for capacity in the public order environment.

Programme 3: Detective Services. Here, sub-programme 1: Crime Investigations drove expenditure in the Detective Services programme. The main cost drivers were compensation of employees, fuel, oil and gas and computer services. Some of the estimates that might pose a risk to the Detective Services budget were agency and support/outsourced services, fuel, oil and gas, consumable supplies, stationary, printing and office supplies, operating leases and training and development. In most of these items actual 2013/14 outcomes or estimates for 2014/15 exceeded the medium term estimates. The development of information technology and specialised training are focus areas in this programme. Allocative efficiency of the budget will therefore contribute to the successful outcomes of this programme.

Programme 4: Crime Intelligence and Programme 5: Protection and Security Services. These programmes consumed just over 7% of the entire Police budget. The main cost drivers were expenditure on compensation of employees of 90.6 and 89% of total average spending over the medium term.

Briefing by Committee Researcher: Analysis on SAPS Budget 2015/16
Ms Nicolette Van Zyl-Gous, stated that the adjusted budget 2014/15 main appropriation remained unchanged during the adjustment period. R115m shifted from Buildings and other fixed structures (capital assets) to compensation of employees (current payments) against S34 (4)(c) of the PFMA, 1999. Programmes Visible Policing and Protection and Security Services were adjusted upwards and the Detective Services Programme was adjusted downwards. With expenditure trends, information was not available for year-end (and SAPS also not reporting). For the third quarter (ending in December 2014) the spending indicated that spending on compensation of employees of R140.5m was higher than planned, spending on goods and services was behind spending by R321.1m and pending on payments for capital assets was behind expected spending by R332.1m. outstanding issues included the appointment of the CFO, the disciplinary Code, the criminality audit, border control, migration of personnel and cases from detectives to the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigations (DPCI) and the retention Plan for VIP Protectors.

For the Medium Term Strategic Framework (MTSF) (2014-2019) and the NDP, Outcome 3 stated that all people in SA were and felt safe and for this the MTSF listed five main sub-outcomes, yet the SAPS Strategic Plan listed four priorities, of which only the strengthening of the criminal justice system (CJS) corresponded. Alignment was lacking as many MTSF sub-outcome indicators were not included in the APP including:
- Improve SAPS Investigation to conduct interviews with complainants within 24 hours;
- Computer generated investigation progress report
- Cybercrime strategy
- Reduce levels of contact crime: Customer satisfaction surveys and Assessments.

Crime intelligence-driven policing was a MTSF priority of which the first outcome of the turn-around strategy was “declaring war against crime”. It was important for the Committee to question the negative impact of this, unpack the establishment of the National Management Forum as the “main decision-making body of the SAPS”, ask if a National Policing Board would be established as recommended by the NDP, discuss the successes of the new Recruitment Framework, ascertain the location and head of the SAPS Research Institute/Component, the manner in which the Code of conduct will be incorporated into the Disciplinary Code/Regulations and the CJS business plan signed and incorporated into APP as per the MTSF. Within enterprise risk, 12 crucially important risks were listed, but it is unclear how the Key Risk Indicators will be achieved and through what measures, how will charges of criminal conduct be reduced, how will inadequate security of personnel be addressed, SAPS being attacked with assault rifles, the effectiveness of street survival training, that the ineffective financial management was listed, yet the CFO position was vacant for more than a year and how will civilians in protection be protected?

In the Justice Crime Prevention and Security (JCPS) Cluster, R157.5 billion (23% of R679.5 billion national budget) was allocated, the police vote of R76.3 billion was 48.5% of the cluster’s budget while the Defence and Military Veterans had the second largest (R44.5 billion/28%) budget in the cluster. Nationally, the police vote was the second largest single budget allocation to a department (11% of the national budget) while the largest allocation was to Social Development - R138.1 billion (20% of the national budget). With SAPS, the main appropriation of R76.3 billion represented a real increase of R371 million or 0.51%. The holding budget had little more than an inflationary increase. In perspective, 1% of SAPS Budget equalled R763 million, the R105.1m budget of the CSP was 0.14% of the SAPS budget and the R234.8m budget of the IPID was 0.3% of the SAPS budget. R702.2 million of the SAPS budget was ring-fenced to be appropriated to infrastructure and R105 million was appropriated to the CSP.

Ms Van Zyl-Gous addresses the programmes:
Programme 1: Administration: Its budget of R16.2b, which was the second largest allocation and represented a 1.4% real increase compared to R15.3b allocation of 2014/15. The Corporate Services sub-programme received R16b of this allocation, which was 98% of the entire programme budget. Key sub-institutions in the Office of the National Commissioner included the Internal Audit, Presidential Protection Services, Corporate Communication, Crime Intelligence, Executive Support, and Legal Advisory Services (Research Institute). Several changes were made to the indicators in this programme including:
- Percentage of members declared competent in use of a handgun and legal principles. Although this was welcomed, the Committee should ask why it limited to handguns
- Performance indicator to maintain the ration of not more than 75/25% for compensation/operational expenditure removed. This was a concern as expected compensation expenditure was closer to 80%
- Performance indicators for 379 police stations to be demographically analysed
- Breakdown of 50 966 vehicles – how many active vans?
- Indicator for spending of devolved projects removed
- Drafting legislation replaced with drafting policies
- IS/ICT targets were welcomed .

Ms Van Zyl-Gous discussed the staffing plan noting that there were 198 010 funded posts in 2014/15 and 198 042 funded posts in 2015/16. In 2015/16, it was estimated that compensation of employees will be R57.8b out of the R72.5b total appropriation, which was almost 80% of the budget. Newly established structures will be prioritised and capacitated with existing posts:
Revised cluster framework: 103
Deputy Station Commander: 100
Integrity Unit: 50
Research Component:50
Trial Units: 40

There was also a re-enlistment drive to ensure the right skills in specialised environments. To accelerate the recruitment process, SAPS entered into partnership with the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) to recruit from the military skills programme to shorten training programme. This partnership should be unpacked fully as there was a danger of having military trained personnel in the civilian service.

With the capital works plan, there was a longstanding concern of low expenditure and under performance. 189 capital works projects were in execution phase including:
- police stations, victim friendly facilities, mobile units, electricity repairs and upgrades, generators, air conditioners and land
- Delineated timelines
- SAPS did not report capital works projects under management of Department of Public Works (DPW)
- Evidence stores (SAPS 13): Uniformed standard developed?
- Holding facilities
- How many of the 1 130 police stations were leased privately, from the state and owned by the SAPS.

With the information systems/information and communication technology plan, the lack of delineated budget for IS/ICT projects had been a longstanding concern with low expenditure and under performance. The ICT Infrastructure plan focused on modernisation, implementation and maintenance of the following:
- The National Network Modernisation;
- Radio Communication Modernisation;
- Expand Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) infrastructure capacity;
- Establish and Modernise Audio Visual (e.g. voice, video) etc;
- Establishment of the Network Operations Centre;
- Restructure and expanded Hosting Services; and
- Expand and maintain End User Equipment.

It became increasingly apparent that (1) the Department was having difficulty in spending these funds properly during the financial year, even when they were ring fenced and (2) the results of the systems were not apparent at station level to date. The impact of lack of systems within the Department had devastating effects on its ability to manage its own information in terms of, for example, the assets that it had in its possession and thus it cannot be expected to make any strategic decisions in this regard. The Committee should ask when the fruits of the CSIR partnership will be visible.

Programme 2: Visible Policing. Its budget of R38.8b, was the largest allocation at 50.83% of total budget went to this programme. There was a real increase of 0.09% compared to the R37.04b allocation of 2014/15. The Crime Prevention sub-programme received R30.7b of this allocation, which was 79% of the entire programme budget. Border Security Sub-programme received onlyR1.7b (4.5%) while 53% of the entire personnel were at a cost of R30.6b. The performance indicator for stations rendering a victim friendly service had been qualified significantly and should be explained because there was a target of 100%. There was a split in recovery of lost/stolen firearms into state owned and private where there was only a 24% target for state-owned firearms. The target for rural safety was reinstated and the new target for the School Safety Plan was welcomed but it should be explained in terms of the outcomes and value. The performance indicator for reaction times to Alpha, Bravo and Charlie complaints were removed – SAPS was busy with the process of developing customised targets. The Committee should urge SAPS to retain the target in the interim, instead of losing the measurement completely. There should be more focus on Border Security environment and Public Order Policing (POPs) capacitation.

Programme 3: Detective Services. It has a budget of R15.8b. The Crime Investigation sub-programme received R10.58b of the main appropriation, which was 66.89% of the entire programme budget and the Specialised Investigations sub-programme received R1.3b. Targets under the effective investigation of crime were lowered and based on the previous financial year performance. Achievement of the SAPS in CJS targets should be questioned in terms of:
- Conviction rate for serious crime
- Study by SA Institute for Race Relations found that the convictions rate was only 22%
- Nearly 78% of cases brought by the SAPS were rejected by prosecutors
- Arrest to investigate, not investigate to arrest
- Effectiveness of Detective Court Case Officers (DCCOs).        

Assets seized in serious commercial cases remained too low – despite the MTSF, the target should be increased. Cybercrime was worth $445b annually worldwide and R5.8 billion in SA so while the new target in this area was welcomed, the target for an 18% detection rate was too low. Members should also question the capacity of the unit as only 170 members were trained. There were significant challenges in this programme but SAPS should comply with legislation:
- S17H(5): Budget must be ring-fenced
- S17K(2A): Budget must include a full breakdown of the DPCI Budget
- S17K(2B): The National Head of the Directorate shall make a presentation to Parliament on the budget of the DPCI.

There were also questions around the migration of cases and personnel, the stability of the DPCI and the impact of the Constitutional Court judgement (Nov 2014) especially on the Policy Guidelines. The four new targets should be welcomed especially in terms of DNA Intelligence cases.

Programme 4: Crime Intelligence (CI). The main appropriation of R3.1b to the programme was a real percentage increase of 3% compared to R2.8b allocation of 2014/15. Sub-programmes were relatively equally resourced with the Crime Intelligence Operations sub-programme receiving R1.3b and the Intelligence and Information Management sub-programme receiving R1.7b. there was a new indicator to have 13 350 enquiries investigated, which was establishing the facts and truth surrounding an allegation before operationalising the information. The SAPS allowed 14 working days for the finalisation of the process (which was too long). The enquiry investigations led to network operations, of which the SAPS targeted to conduct 759 operations, which were approved by a National or Provincial Network Operation Committee – Members should ask why served on these committees. Ad hoc operations were initiated by other components based on information from the CI environment and this must be explained along with the decrease in Crime Intelligence reports (from 261 193 to 158 283).

Programme, 5: Protection and Security Services. This had smallest portion of the budget vote. The main appropriation of R2.3b was a real percentage increase of 3.6% compared to R2.1b allocation of 2014/15. The VIP Protection sub-programme received R1.004b of this allocation, which was 43% of the total programme budget. The Government Security Regulator sub-programme received a 9.6% real increase from R96.8m in 2014/15 to R111.2m in 2015/16.

In conclusion, SAPS had some significant challenges. Most prominent of these challenges were related to “policing smarter”. IS/ICT budgets were not spent with projects having little tangible results, the infrastructure budget was not spent with long lead times for stations being finalised, which led to escalation in costs. The prioritisation of the CJS modernisation was lacking, there was a fear that SAPS simply removed a target if it was not being achieved and alignment of targets to MTSF priorities was lacking. The strategic priorities stated by the SAPS, like professionalising and demilitarization, listed a host of activities. However, was any thought given to what a professional and demilitarised police service in a democratic dispensation looked like? How will the impact of these activities be measured? As we celebrate 20 years of policing in a democracy, the Committee should critically evaluate the progress of SAPS and the value for money received for the second largest national budget vote.

Institute for Security Studies submission
Mr Gareth Newham, ISS Head: Governance, Crime and Justice Division, provided a host of statistical data on SA crime trends, the breakdown of SA violent crime categories, the murder rate at provincial levels per 100 000 people, the national murder rate, the attempted murder rate, the connection between assault and murder and assault trends from 2004/05 to 2013/14.

Mr Newham outlined the reporting rates for selected crimes, aggravated robbery cases from 2004/05 to 2013/14, sub-categories for aggravated robbery and the provincial aggravated robbery rate before moving onto the Gauteng Aggravated Robbery Strategy, it was develop jointly by the Gauteng SAPS and the Department of Community Safety in 2008. The strategy was canvassed with the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and other law enforcement agencies. The key objective of the strategy was to substantially increase the arrest, prosecution and conviction rates of the direct perpetrators and those in their support networks. It was overseen by a Joint Steering Committee comprised of SAPS and the MEC for Community Safety. The key components of the Strategy included the established the Gauteng Crime Management Centre (CMC) to coordinate intelligence, investigations and provide technical to investigators, strengthening crime intelligence and analysis, establishment of 22 specialised investigating units deployed across the province, enhancing forensic support to crime investigators, improving response times to 10111 emergency calls, disrupting perpetrators through intelligence led road blocks and saturated policing and improving case management through the criminal justice system. Mention was then made if street robbery cases for 2013/14 and organised robbery cases for 2013/14 as well as robberies of shopping centre trends.

Mr Newham spoke about the perceptions of corruption trends, SAPS public violence and Public Order Policing capacity, SAPS roadblocks and cordons from 2002/03 to 2013/14, SAPS person and vehicle searches from 2002/03 to 2013/14, SAPS arrests and National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) case finalisation, a three year SAPS crime intelligence performance trend, the shift towards civil litigation against SAPS and civil claim payouts against SAPS from 2009/10 to 2013/14

Mr Newham said the Committee should focus on questioning what specific strategy SAPS had to reduce robberies through increasing the arrest and conviction of perpetrators. If there was a strategy, how will its implementation and impact be assessed and by whom? What specific strategy did SAPS had to improve its arrest and convictions of those involved in murder, rape and corruption? What specific steps were being undertaken to improve the performance of the SAPS Crime Intelligence Division in relation to key crime challenges confronting the SAPS?

In terms of the link between police performance and police conduct, arguably, the ability of the police to control crime through using additional resources so as to increase policing activities appears to have reached a limit. Modest but consistent scientific evidence supported the hypothesis that the less respectful police were towards suspects and citizens generally, the less people will comply with the law.

Nr Newham discussed the indicators of police abuse of power noting that fewer people were reporting cases to IPID, while there was a greater proportion using civil cases to hold SAPS to account. In 2013/14 a total of 3 916 cases of alleged police assault were opened with IPID which was an average of almost 11 per day. 66% of the adult population think that corruption was a widespread problem in the police (study conducted by HSRC) and less than half (41%) of population had any level of trust in the police (HSRC study).

SAPS set out the core values, principles and code of conduct to guide police decision-making and behaviour. All police officials signed the code stating that they understand and will adhere to these values and principles. The NDP stated that “in the short term, the code of conduct should be included in the disciplinary regulations and the performance appraisal system of the police”; “any breaches of these codes should be dealt with by the disciplinary system as a matter of priority”. Rewards and promotions should be explicitly based on adherence to these codes. Members of all police oversight agencies and structures become familiar with these codes and used them in their interactions and engagements with the SAPS. The Committee should request practical examples as to how these codes were integrated into the disciplinary procedures and performance appraisal systems of the SAPS (remember only 2.2% of the disciplinary charges prosecuted in 2013/14 specifically referred to contravening the Code of Conduct). The Committee could also request explanations about how these codes were integrated into the recruitment and vetting processes of the SAPS, request explanations of how training was provided so that police officials used these codes to guide their decisions and behaviour and request explanations of how SAPS plans and strategies specifically promoted the values and principles contained in these codes.

With indicators assessing police officer conduct effective police complaints mechanisms were crucial for police leadership to understand the nature and trends of officer conduct. This would require a clear description of how the citizen complaints system functioned, the resources available to run the system, key challenges facing the system and details on how these challenges were being addressed so as to strengthen the efficiency and effectiveness of the system. Also needed was the number of complaints against police officials that were received by the SAPS complaint mechanisms each year, a breakdown of the nature of complaints (number of criminal, misconduct and service delivery related complaints received), the average length of time investigations took until a decision was made to prosecute or dismiss the complaint and the profile of police officials that received the most numbers of complaints by station, unit, component, rank and time employed in the SAPS. The Committee should receive this information on an annual basis to assess the extent to which police leadership were taking practical steps to improve police conduct.

Turning to the challenge of police impunity, in 2013/14 the IPID received 4 585 criminal cases against police officials. A total of 950 (20.7%) cases were before the courts and there were 84 (1.8%) convictions. In 2013/14, out of the 6 053 hearings that were held, 2 294 cases (39%) were withdrawn or ended in a not guilty verdict. The single biggest outcome of a disciplinary hearing was a “not guilty verdict” – 1 467 hearings (24%), while 39% of disciplinary hearings ended with no sanction, only 9% ended in a dismissal. There were an additional 664 “suspended dismissals”. Out of 537 dismissals only 126 (23.5%) were confirmed in 2013/14. The Committee should question what proportion of disciplinary hearings was generated as a result of public complaints received by the SAPS, the reasons for many hearings ending in a relatively light sanction (e.g. verbal or written warnings) when these disciplinary outcomes can be decided upon by line managers without a hearing being necessary, the reasons that so many cases ended in a ‘not guilty’ verdict or was withdrawn if there was sufficient evidence to hold a hearing, what was the reason for the difference between 537 hearings recommending dismissal and only 126 officers being dismissed in 2013/14? What were suspended dismissals and why were there so many, what plans were there to improve the functioning of the disciplinary system in the SAPS, what indicators will be monitored to ensure that the system was improving and what systems were in place for recording members of the public that wanted to report positive behaviour of police officials and how were these linked to awards and promotions in the SAPS?

Mr Newham addressed the indicators for assessing police officer accountability, noting the importance to ask about the total number of police officials facing criminal charges, a breakdown of the various criminal charges, the number of cases per crime category that were referred to court for prosecution, that were withdrawn, that ended in a “not guilty” verdict, and that ended in a criminal conviction, the sentences received for the convictions per category and the numbers of police officials that were dismissed and not dismissed after being convicted of a criminal offence. Other questions to ask were, how much of the SAPS annual budget was allocated towards implementing and monitoring the SAPS Anti-Corruption Strategy, the number of staff members who were involved in implementing and monitoring the SAPS Anti-Corruption Strategy, the measurable indicators that the SAPS will use to assess whether the Anti-Corruption Strategy was being effectively implemented and its impact, when will an independent evaluation of the implementation and impact of this strategy be undertaken and the numbers of announced and unannounced station level inspections and consequences for Station Commanders not improving problematic areas.

In improving SAPS leadership, it was important to establish a National Policing Board with multi-sectoral and multi-disciplinary expertise to set objective standards for recruitment, selection, appointment and promotion. The National Commissioner and Deputies should be appointed by the President only on recommendations by a selection panel that would select and interview candidates against objective criteria following a transparent and competitive recruitment process. A competency assessment of all officials should be conducted starting with an independent assessment of the competency and integrity of all officers above the rank of Brigadier, starting with those holding the rank of Lt-General. In the next five years a two-stream system should be developed to create high calibre officers and recruits (non-commissioned officer and officer streams) to be trained as professionals. No officer may be appointed to a higher rank until they had passed the appropriate training for that rank. Finally, the organisational culture and subcultures of the police should be reviewed to assess the effects of current management practices and “the serial crises of top management.”

Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU) submission
Mr Nkosinathi Theledi, POPCRU General Secretary, said POPCRU was of the view that that better value for money in the public service depended on rigorous financial management and effective systems of budget management and believed the budget process splayed a significant role in clarifying options, probing costs and assessing fair allocation of resources as well as implementation modalities in ensuring that SA became a crime free country by 2030 as stipulated in the NDP.

In terms of SAPS resources, the budget needed to be clearer on the location of the 1 138 stations highlighted in the budget review. This would allow for the assessment of equitable distribution of resources across the board. POPCRU welcomed the initiative to aim that all police stations had victim friendly infrastructure, more especially for victims of traumatic crimes such as rape, sexual offences and abuse. The union urged the Department to put more focus on previously disadvantaged communities as everyone knew these stations were operating under undesirable conditions. POPCRU also requested the Department allocate key resources such as vehicles where they were seriously needed – there could not be a situation where a lot of vehicles were based at head office instead of at stations which would negatively impact on service delivery. The union disputed SAPS statement which said that at the end of March 2014, approximately 90% of police stations were implementing sector policing and had functioning community policing forums – this was a misleading statement taking into consideration the fact that implementation of sector policing and Community Policing Forums (CPFs) in rural areas were still a mammoth task.

Police stations were key service delivery points for the public and the Union therefore recommended that resources must be allocated to police stations based on real needs to address the issue of equitable allocation of resources. It was of significant value that communities in rural areas must receive the same type of policing provided for in urban areas.

Mr Theledi turned to demilitarisation of the police noting the NDP clearly pointed out that military force cannot be reconciled with a public service such as the police. The role of the military was to overpower and destroy an enemy – we cannot then have a police “service” of this calibre. Remilitarisation undermined 1994 procedures of demilitarisation which was aimed at professionalising the service and building communities’ trust in the police. During the budget discussions in July 2014, the Minister committed himself to demilitarise the service but, so far, there were not fruits seen of this statement. Increased cooperation between the police and the community was a priority to POPCRU and the plan to professionalise SAPS must be developed into a clear plan of action and be implemented as a matter of priority. POPCRU saw the professionalization of SAPS as an essential part of strengthening the criminal justice system.

The union remained greatly concerned by the attacks and killings of the men and women in blue – an attack of a police officer was an attack on the entire nation hence there was a dire need for a collaborative intervention between the community, police and civil society to eradicate these killings. This tied in with the call for the Department to improve the training on self defence mechanisms and provide police officers with relevant protective equipment to augment the protection of members. Equally important, the Union was gravely concerned with the number of police officers committing suicide and it needed answers from the Department in terms of the support offered to members after traumatic events. POPCRU highlighted the fact that the current existing employee health awareness programmes were ineffective. It recommended that these programmes were ineffective and recommended the programmes were properly capacitated to meet the required needs of police officers and this was a kind of service to be made available at station level where it was mostly needed and not at head office. Over and above the Union called for an extremely harsher sentence to the perpetrators of any kind of crime against police officers.

Mr Theledi highlighted the number of recommendations POPCRU had with regard to promotions:
- There should be a budget set aside for promotion to new ranks
- There should be a budget for grade progression
- A new salary structure should be developed to accommodate new developments or new dispensation similar to the one in 2006
- New salary for Public Service Act employees which were supposed to be incorporated by the department
- A clear promotion programme for each financial year should be developed and a revised pay progression in line with all public servants to be implemented by the 2016/17 financial year
- The Department must fill all vacant funded positions urgently as this hampered service delivery.

It was crucial for the Department to improve the conditions of service for our men and women in blue and ensure that they were remunerated in a manner that boosted their morale and instilled a sense of dignity.

POPCRU noted that little had been done in reducing the SAPS top heavy structure, particularly, to reduce the number of Deputy National Commissioners from six to three. There were many other positions at the level of Deputy Director General the Union believed were mostly a duplication of services with adverse effects on the budget. Each of these senior officers drew a salary of approximately R1.5 million per annum from the budget of SAPS. Below each DDG were a number of chief directors and a lot of directors along with about 13 divisional commissioners and nine provincial commissioners. POPCRU recommended the Department would do much better with a leaner and meaner top structure with bigger personnel where the actual work took place for proper delivery of required services. The current top heavy structure could be down sized if the Department merged some components that rendered similar services. It was certain some of the components within the Department were a mere duplication in terms of functions. This would certainly save the Department a huge amount of funds that can be utilised for a better purpose that will impact positively towards the fight against crime. There was a need to have sufficiently trained and properly skilled officials to be entrusted with the responsibility of making sure that those who were in conflict with the law were taken care of within the relevant prescripts instead of allocating a bigger chunk of the budget to the top-heavy structure as had been the case. The focus of restructuring should be directed towards reducing the provincial and national structures and completely dissolve the clusters in order to improve coordination and the provision of functional policing and the support services.

Mr Theledi noted the escalating under spending on the Civilian Secretariat for Police (CSP) and that it the Department failed to meet most of the annual target due to issues related to its establishment. The Union called for the speedy finalisation of all procedures related to the independence of this component. The Union had learned with dismay that the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) was failing to fill its funded positions which was compromising service delivery. This process needed to be speeded up. The challenges in the private security industry had manifested itself in many ways which included non-compliance and a lack of proper accountability. As a result the Union called for the President to approve the Private Security Industry Regulation Bill which will strengthen the regulatory oversight of PSIRA and ensure there was regulatory compliance by the private security industry.

Bringing criminals to justice was not solely dependent on the police and POPCRU therefore submitted that integration of the departments within the Criminal Justice System should be a top priority in the fight against crime. Building safety using an integrated approach required a focused approach on the causes of crime. It required active citizenship and the mobilization of all levels of state and non-state capacities and resources at all levels. It was therefore of crucial value that we continue working together in the fight against crime and to create safer communities.

SA Policing Union submission
Mr Mpo Kwinika, SAPU President, stated that as an organisation, SAPU supported the endeavours by the authorities to increase the ever needed resources to enable the SAPS to fulfil its mandate of fighting crime. Having said this, where there were challenges, SAPU shall not hesitate to raise them with the relevant authority. It shall constructively engage the authorities in order to bring the issues to their attention to elicit the necessary corrections. In terms of crime, SAPU was observing an unprecedented practice where the commitment to reduce crime lacked some visible commitments. Instead of planning to reduce crime, as had always been the norm, the SAPS seemed to be planning to have increase in crime. The Union noted that, last year, the SAPS tabled the plan promising that by the year 2015/2016, it shall reduce serious crime by 2% to 1 683 827. Now, the SAPS suggested that it was incorrect to make such commitment to the nation, and it planned to have serious crime reduced to 1 790 428 in 2015/2016. This was in reality, an increase by 106 601 cases that represent an increase of 6.3% as compared to the figure promised last year [i.e. 1 790 428 – 1 683 827 = 106 601]. With regard to the Detective Services Programme, last year the SAPS committed itself to crime detection rate for serious crime to 44% in 2015/2016. Now, the SAPS was making an about turn and plans to achieve the detection rate of 41% in 2015/2016. This was in essence, a shift in plan to perform 3% less than the target set last year. Furthermore, the SAPS promised the public that it planned to achieve 78.89% trial ready case dockets in 2015/2016. Now, it planned to achieve 69.04% trial ready dockets in 2015/2016. This was a plan to reduce the target set last year by 10% - a matter that was of grave concern. SAPU were of the view that the reduction of targets will not instil confidence in the communities that we serve. We further believe that organised crime and corruption should feature prominently in the plan.

With the professionalisation of SAPS, SAPU appreciated and supported commitment by the SAPS to professionalise the police. It must be cautioned that this commitment must be followed by practice. A promise to target graduates in recruitment will go a long way in selecting the finer cream of recruits. However, we need to guard against sending conflicting messages by reducing the requirements for appointment in top positions to grade 12, a requirement that was equally required for an administrative clerk. The Union observed this in the filling of the posts of Provincial Heads and Crime Intelligence on major general’s rank. Over and above, the Union observed a trend where senior management structure (SMS) posts were not advertised as required. Many posts, including Divisional Commissioners, Provincial Commissioners and Component Heads were filed in this current financial year through Regulation 45(9) of the South African Police Service Employment Regulation, 2008. This provision had never been intended to be a general norm, but it was supposed to be deployed in exceptional cases. As a result of this method of filling the posts, many potential candidates were not given an equal opportunity to compete for these positions. This was not in the interest of the service. It created more despair to committed members who may not be known by those who were doing head hunting. Head hunting was a recipe for an unholy allegiance on the part of the hunters and the hunted. It was even more concerning to note that a critical post of Divisional Commissioner of Finance and Administration which was vacant and funded, had not been filled since the 1 September 2013. Professionalism was underpinned by discipline, which was based, amongst others, on respect for seniority. We had entered an era where our top management erroneously believed that there was no seniority amongst managers on the rank levels of Lieutenant General (appointed as Deputy National Commissioner), Lieutenant General (appointed as Divisional Commissioner) and Lieutenant General (appointed as Provincial Commissioner). On this front, SAPU observed the shifting of senior managers between different categories as if they were placed laterally, a move that resulted in seniors reporting to juniors. The Union had seen some managers appointed as Lieutenant General, a rank that was abolished by the regulations in 1995. This had also seen two senior managers being retrenched against the existing protocols in the SAPS. If discipline had to be sustained, Regulation 8 of the South African Police Service Regulations, 1964, must be respected to the letter.

Mr Theledi thought resources were best used on the ground and perhaps one divisional commissioner position could be created incorporating all functions. Resources for directors and chief directors could be utilised. Provinces needed to coordinate all policing in that particular province and not other gatekeepers at those levels making policing impossible. There could be a strategic review of all the functions at head office

Discussion
The Chairperson questioned leadership, indicating that the Committee would specifically look at this issue. Moving into the NDP era and the ISS submissions on competency assessments and recruitment given international examples, should the top management of SAPS come from within SAPS ranks or civilians from outside? What was the best approach in this matter? POPCRU also acknowledged the top-heavy structure of SAPS which the Committee also raised last year with national management who were not in agreement – what was the ideal top structure in SAPS as envisaged by the unions?

Mr Newham said that there was no single correct answer and there were various international models for leadership. One important thing to bear in mind was that if it was decided a non-police officer would be national commissioner, that person should have widely recognised exceptional public service management skills. For example, someone who had been the Director-General for Home Affairs and turned the department or an entity around so had wide public acclaim, this was the only kind of person he suggested be put in charge of the police because they would bring the best skills to the position. It was not a blanket statement to say that no civilians could be put in that position but it needed to be specific. When looking at studies of police leadership, legitimacy in the police was critical – if national instructions were received by police officers and it did not make sense, immediately one would think this leader did not know what they were doing and this broke down relations of trust around demand and control. He agreed with the NDP which stated that the national commissioner and entire top structure should be appointed through an open, competitive and transparent process through a national policing board chaired by someone completely independent, like a retired judge, similarly to how heads of Chapter Nine Institutions were appointed where there were nominations and interviews of those short-listed for the very best candidates to apply. Vetting could occur within this process and the public and police could see the skills and abilities of the individual before s/he stepped into the position of national commissioner. This would crucially give the individual legitimacy and authority which would then make the job immediately easier. This could not just be for the national commissioner but should be for the entire top structure because the various components needed to work together. There was a tendency in many policing institutions all over the world for the various components to compete with each other or work in silos so it was important to have a strong, visionary leader/manager to bring the components together with no doubt that any of the individuals in top management were committed, and had the correct qualifications and expertise. With proper processes the right people would get there and SA had such people.

Mr Theledi said that in terms of the top management, currently there were 13 divisional and nine provincial commissioners. It was best to utilise the resources from top-management on the ground where there was a shortage of resources. There could be a combination of divisions, especially for corporate services, to reduce the numbers. Provinces could be used to coordinate all policing functions on the ground and not other gatekeepers. There were a lot of resources currently used in comfort zones but there should be a strategic review of all functions in head office which were similar and for them to be combined under one divisional commissioner to take charge, to reduce the levels.

Mr Kwinika added that SAPU presented a proposed structure in 2012 criticising the top-heaviness of the police back then. SAPU felt there should be a distinction between operations and support for all functions to fall under one of the categories. In the Office of the National Commissioner, a Lt. Gen. was not needed – a Maj. Gen. was sufficient in that position to coordinate activities in the Office of the Nat. Commissioner. The proposed structure made by the union could be made available to the Committee.

Ms A Molebatsi (ANC) heard the ISS say SAPS had the right to use force – to what extent could this right to use force go? She asked if the structure of deputy station commanders was seen as another toothless structure or was it seen as a real functioning structure?

Mr Newham replied that there were two fundamental challenges to the occupation of policing anywhere in the world which was the misuse of powers for personal gain (corruption) and misuse of the right to use force unnecessarily (police brutality). In a democracy the common standard must be for the minimum force required to fulfill a lawful objective – police members should never ever use anything other than the absolute minimum level of force that was needed to achieve a certain goal. The right to use firearms should be a back-up but ideally officers should be trained to use authority through their voice in a public space to command authority and communicate properly. Due to a lack of such training, police used physical force too quickly went it was not necessary. Too often there were cases of people being assaulted after they were handcuffed, handcuffs being put on too tight, using pepper spray unnecessarily and it started becoming normative. America had a huge problem with this at the moment but it was not unique to any specific agency. It was important to ensure there were clear standards. One of the shortcomings of SAPS was that there was not a single way of training police officials on how to use force - through a single policy. It should be clear in every officer’s mind when to use what element of force.

Ms Van Zyl-Gous spoke to the deputy station commanders saying it seemed to be a way of taking off administrative duties. The structure was currently being capacitated so only time will tell if this will produce a positive impact. The Committee should keep a key eye on it in future.

Ms L Mabija (ANC) asked SAPU about the comments on the problem of Lieutenants being appointed when the regulation to do so was abolished and senior managers being retrenched against the existing protocols of SAPS. When all of this occurred, did SAPU attempt to discuss it with the relevant authorities? The Committee needed to be in a position to understand the whole situation because Members were not there.

Mr Kwinika responded that the Basic Conditions of Employment Act indicated how a person was removed from service especially when the post became redundant. The Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA), however, derived a document stating that if the post became redundant and the individual could not be placed anywhere else, section 35 shall be utilised and not the Basic Conditions of Employment Act. With the skills not produced in the police, such as, social workers and psychologists, these individuals would be employed into the environment through section 49.

Mr Z Mbhele (DA) asked the PBO about the statement that the Department had the ability to spend but there seemed to be a curious disconnect between the top and what was happening on the ground in stations in terms of trickling down of this second biggest budget allocation in SA – this was something the Committee had seen. Was there any analysis conducted by the PBO which indicated what was happening in the middle with the budget flow from the top to the bottom because the two just did not seem to match. He asked the Committee researcher if there was any official explanation or reason why the CSP was not a separate budget vote yet especially in light of the fact that the Secretariat did become a designated department from April 2014 and something national management was boasting about. He did not understand why the CSP did not have a separate budget vote for 2015/16 when structurally the entity became a designated department last year. He asked the ISS why the Gauteng Aggravated Robbery Strategy was abandoned if it was showing results. Was sector policing the appropriate approach for addressing aggravated robberies and if not, what was the approach good for? What were the shortcomings of sector policing? His constituency was in Heideveld / Manenberg and so he asked about the approach needed in addressing gang violence.

Ms Orlandi answered that she did not do further research on the ability to spend but if a budget was spent, it did not mean it was spent efficiently and effectively. It was all about allocating money where the need was and if there was constant overspending there must be something wrong. Either efficiency gains should be implemented or there was something wrong with the calculation of the budget allocated. With constant under spending, the capacity to spend should be created. There was a root cause of over or under-spending and further investigation on this needed to be done if it was occurring. This was the main thing to look at.

Ms Van Zyl-Gous said there was no official correspondence on the CSP not having a separate budget vote yet but she knew the Secretariat had significant problems with structure, like in financial management, and structure transfers were taking a little more time.

Mr Newham replied that the Member would have to ask the then Lt. Gen. Petros why the strategy was abandoned because he was the one who disbanded it. He thought that when the Lt. Gen. Petros came in towards the end of 2011 and saw the robbery stats were going down, so he thought they were on top of the problem. There was then a whole new strategy for police in Gauteng directed at various crimes so there was a reprioritisation of different units. At times it was better to keep with a certain strategy even if the numbers of the crime was decreasing because it was easier to extend an existing structure and that way of working to other crimes, than to shut down an entire structure and re-establish it later when the crime increased. This was seen in New York because specialisation was the way of mentoring new young police officers with a professional ethos. Sector policing was a community policing model to try and ensure police officials were invested in certain locations and communities and the community then knew who those police officers were who were dedicated to building relationships so if members of the community needed help, there was an officer they knew. It was not a specialised function looking at a particular crime because the gangs perpetrating aggravated robberies, for example, worked across sectors and precincts. Sector policing worked in tandem with specialised units. Gang violence was different because of the kind of culture gangs created in a certain community so while specialised policing was important there, it was not the solution. Police should reduce levels of violence so that other agencies could move in to discourage children from joining gangs, provide better education and such. Just using policing could exacerbate the violence as gangs would shoot at the police and police would shoot back. Unfortunately, there was no easy answer to gangs.  

Mr M Tshishonga (AGANG) noted that there seemed to be no trust between the unions and the police – were the issues raised today discussed with SAPS and if so, what was the conclusion or recommendation? Was there disagreement or did the police simply not want to engage the unions? He sought an explanation of what the national policing board was and how it would help to solve some of the challenges experienced?

Mr Kwinika explained the job of a unionist was to talk especially in the police environment where employees did not have the right to strike so the job of the unionist was to talk. When the unionists spoke and what was said was unpalatable to management, they shut the unionists out of the system - SAPU had been out for quite some time. This was not a good working relationship among strategic partners. There should be cooperation and common understanding of issues of utmost importance to the Service itself and the membership because at the end of the day the SAPS members needed to be happy and provide could service to the communities they served. On 19 December 2014, SAPU did have a discussion with the National Commissioner where a lot of issues were discussed but the engagement was held too late – the National Commissioner had already been in the post three years. The Union was used to it – it had not even met with the new Minister of Police yet. If the relationship with the unions could be improved, the Service would be better than it was today.

Ms Van Zyl-Gous explained that the establishment of a national policing board was recommended with a panel of outside experts on policing, especially in terms of recruitment and appointment of senior managers, to have the process more open and transparent.

Mr P Groenewald (FF+) also asked why the Gauteng Aggravated Robberies Strategy was abandoned. He thought most of the questions should be directed to the police. Did the 2010 Fifa World Cup hosted by SA play a role in developing the strategy?

The Chairperson pointed out the purpose of the meeting was to prepare Members for tomorrow's engagement with SAPS.

Mr Newham said the strategy started to be implemented at the beginning of 2009 and part of the reason it could be done was because of the World Cup which provided the political will. This was because there was a lot of resistance at senior levels at that time in SAPS Gauteng, notably from the then provincial Commissioner who thought that there should not be specialisation as there was this notion of de-specialisation at the time.

Ms D Kohler Barnard (DA) asked the Committee researcher how the Committee could get figures on how many stations were without flush toilets, water, electricity or generators. She asked this because when the latest National Commissioner began in the post, there were 153 police stations in the country without some of these things. She asked the question to the Ministry who simply replied that every station had one of these things but this was a fabrication because in the latest SAPS Strategic Plan, it stated that generators would be provided to stations over the coming years. She would be raising this with the Minister. Would the Committee need to go through SAPS or Public Works to get these credible figures? She asked for the thoughts of the ISS on the inability of SAPS to rid themselves of the infamous 1448 convicted criminals in the SAPS ranks when the criminality survey was stopped in 2010 so there was another three years to go through. These police members committed some of the worst crimes imaginable – what would any other global police station have done? If the ISS had carte blanche with the police service, what would be the optimal number of specialised units and what would these units be focused on?

Mr Newham indicated that when SAPS started de-specialising, there were approximately 560 specialised units across the country looking at everything each time there was a flare up of a particular kind of crime in an area. This presented the problem of duplication and too many personnel which could not be controlled. The opposite extreme was to have two specialised units – serious and violent crime and organised crime. There needed to be a balance. Certain crimes like murders, organised crime, robbery, family and sexualised crime and specialised commercial crime had crime units and these were emerging everywhere in the world because of the nature of specialised investigations. One also did not necessarily over-specialise so it was important to look at resources and the most important crimes. It was not easy to say how much specialisation there should be because different agencies did it differently but it needed to be there. Over time such detectives get to now intelligence and prosecutors etc. The other problem with the specialisation was it even if it went unchecked, it could become corrupted and there were examples in the US of specialised units actually taking over drug sales like in New York and San Francisco, so it was not a simple thing but it could work if it was managed properly.

Ms Van Zyl-Gous indicated that in terms of basic services at police stations, there was no easy way to gauge whether stations had those services available. Both the APP and Strategic Plan pointed towards delivery of those services. Members could go through the Annual Report and make a list of the stations and visit them to see whether they had the services required.

Ms Molebatsi noted that exactly a year ago SAPU came before the Committee saying it did not have enough time to scrutinise the budget after the information was received at a late date – had this situation improved? Had the situation with vehicles not being repaired on time, as mentioned by SAPU, improved?

Mr Kwinika replied the resource establishment guide suggested how many vehicles certain police stations should have and how many there actually were. This was the ideal situation. In the actual situation, this was not the case. This made sector policing very difficult because it was a very demanding policing model and it needed both human resources and mechanical transport. This resulted in a rotation of one vehicle to police different routes. This brought wear and tear so many of the vehicles were in the repair garage. There was so much corruption taking place in police garages because of outsourcing. There were cases of corruption dating back five years which still had not been resolved and the Committee should get feedback on this. There should be appropriate budget to sustain the resource establishment guide of all police stations – this would allow broken vehicles to be replaced immediately because the money was there. Instead, when stations applied for vehicles they got less than the requested amount so they were running on a deficit all the time. He did not know if the stations brought this to the attention of the leadership given the disciplined environment of policing.

Deputy Minister Sotyu thought most of things mentioned today were not new to her – she once presided over the Committee for a very long time. She admitted from her own observations that SAPS had a problem with managing resources – there were resources but the problem was there management. She had raised this before she was Deputy Minister and she was still raising it. Many of the challenges raised here, SAPS was aware of but people were not willing to do what they were supposed to be doing. With the disbandment of areas and introduction of clusters, she presided over the Committee when the decision was taken after visiting more than 60% of stations across the provinces. It was obvious that the areas were too vast for one individual to be an area commissioner. Hence it was decided to go for a smaller structure. Unions were part of this consultation to have smaller clusters of stations to better manage resources and what was required and also for information to follow quicker from clusters to provinces and then to national. The proposal by the unions to disband clusters was not a good move because there was nothing wrong with the cluster model. Clusters needed to be better monitored, however, to ensure they knew what their responsibilities were. Next people would be saying we need to disband stations. The clusters were a good model and the decision was very informed.

Deputy Minister Sotyu said that there was a serious problem of vehicle management and repairs. She visited garages herself and found that some vehicles had been there for two years. She thought station commanders should be trained on how to better manage resources - she had visited stations were vehicles were in such a bad state they could not go out to crime scenes. When youth were recruited to join the Service one of the requirements was a driver’s licence, along with matric and being fit etc. Once in the system, it was found some of the officers could not drive but they were given the keys of vehicles and would drive all the way in first gear – this obviously affected the lifespan of the vehicles. SAPS was now incorporating the K53 driving test into its curriculum at colleges for all members to achieve satisfactory driving. This would aid in taking care of vehicles at police stations. The group taken in 2013 would be the first group coming out with this driving skill and the area would be monitored so that communities did not suffer. When unions were invited to engage, they often said the Department was doing very well and should keep it up knowing full well they were not doing well.

African Policing Civilian Oversight Forum (APCOF) submission
Ms Melanie Dugmore, APCOF Technical Director, noted that the values, rights and obligations articulated in the Constitution must inform the country's approach to policing. Transparency and accountability, promotion of rights including equality, human dignity and freedom and security of the person were central to the framework for policing in a democratic state. The Constitution emphasised the central role of security services with specific mention in Section 199(5) the security services must act, and must teach and require their members to act, in accordance with the Constitution and the law, including customary international law and international agreements binding on the Republic". International and regional human rights instruments articulated a rights based approach to policing by providing a legal framework for democratic policing. In addition, the NDP made clear recommendations for policing in SA which, needed to be integrated into policy, legislation and applied by SAPS in its strategic planning processes.

Ms Dugmore said reporting enhanced the quality of accountability stating that reporting frameworks should interrogate implementation because monitoring performance must go beyond percentage reduction targets but examine effectiveness of operational strategies in achieving desired outcomes and the extent to which these comply with legal obligations. There should be reporting on levels of compliance with legislation and international, continental and regional obligations and benchmarks and reporting on the extent to which the internal policy environment had been aligned to new national policy framework, the NDP, and domestic legislation. This required an interrogation of the internal and institutional environment including national instructions and standing orders, performance management systems which supported compliance and provide for mechanisms for meaningful partnerships and engagement with civil society and communities. She recommended the Committee should prescribe reporting criteria to ensure detailed reporting, with appropriate and relevant data, so it can discharge its oversight mandate effectively.

In the alignment of strategic frameworks and performance plans, there was insufficient detail on how recommendations of the NDP will be implemented by CSP and SAPS. It was recommended SAPS and the CSP develop an implementation plan and that this form part of their reporting obligations to the Portfolio Committee. A national policing board should be established, with multi-sectoral and multidisciplinary expertise. It should set standards for recruiting, selecting, appointing and promoting police officials and police officers. The board should also develop a code of ethics and analyse the professional standing of policing, based on international norms and standards. The White Paper on Policing should clearly articulate the establishment, role and function of the Police Board. This should be clearly legislated subsequently in amendments to the SAPS Act and incorporated in strategic planning process and performance plans. A professional police service was essential for a strong criminal justice system. The police code of conduct and a code of professional police practice must be aligned to promotion and disciplinary regulations. The review and development of a code of conduct should be undertaken and presented to the Committee, with clear disaggregated indicators and measures to enable meaningful alignment with performance agreements and professional standards. The police should be demilitarized and the institutional culture of the police should be reviewed to instil the best possible discipline and ethos associated with a professional police service. It was recommended the Committee be briefed on policy proposals and strategies to deliver the NDP’s proposals and for implementation to be monitored by the CSP and SAPS. To reduce levels of crime through community centred approaches, achieving long-term, sustainable safety required tackling the fundamental causes of criminality. This would mean mobilising state and non-state capacities and resources at all levels, and citizen involvement and co-responsibility. There was inadequate attention to promoting partnership and community centred policing approaches. The roles of CPFs and Community Safety Forums (CSFS) needed to be clarified and augmented from both a policy, regulatory perspective and funding perspective. SAPS needed to integrate this paradigm of community centred policing into its operations down to station level. Community centered policing was central to the democratic policing agenda in SA. The complexity and challenge of implementing community policing were ongoing. Station management was at the point of service and should be equipped to respond to challenges and build meaningful stakeholder partnerships around a consensus on priority areas, strategies and joint problem solving. It was recommended that station performance tools needed to be reviewed

For reducing levels of gender based violence crime, the performance indicators for ‘addressing contributors to crime’ (Visible Policing) and ‘reducing levels of serious crime including crimes against women and children’ were inadequate and failed to address necessary interventions by the police which can reduce incidents of these crime, and improve investigation results. It was recommended that interventions must address barriers to reporting of sexual offences and domestic violence, challenges in investigation of these offences and performance management of levels of compliance with regulatory and reporting frameworks. With sexual offences, the development by the CSP of a policy on Reducing Barriers to Reporting Crimes on Gender Based Violence was welcomed. It was critical that this policy be institutionalised in SAPS and operating procedures/instructions facilitate its implementation. The issue of appropriate resourcing and training for SAPS required further attention. It was recommended the oversight role of the NPA be increased in conjunction with the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services specifically regarding the establishment of dedicated sexual offences courts and specialized prosecutors. Implementation of CSP policy recommendations should be incorporated into the reporting framework of SAPS, IPID and CSP. With impunity, the low number of recommendations by IPID and its predecessor the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD), resulting in prosecutions of police members, required urgent attention. There was a need to investigate reasons for low prosecution of police members and develop strategies to address systemic challenges, engage the NPA on their procedure and process regarding the prosecution of IPID cases and track the progress of cases referred to IPID and specifically procedures in place between IPID and the NPA regarding prosecutions.

Ms Dugmore then discussed inefficiencies, noting that with resource allocations, a review was recommended of SAPS methods for determining human resource allocation and for it to be submitted to the Committee and all oversight bodies including provinces. This should include breakdowns of operational and administrative personnel at all levels including: stations/ specialised units/ headquarters. With information management, there was a critical need to enhance the interface between information systems, impacting on policing and crime across sectors, to improve and facilitate effective crime detection and prevention at all levels, including stations. Data collection, capturing of disaggregated information and reporting of crime statistics needed to be urgently addressed to provide accurate data which can facilitate appropriate monitoring and evaluation of strategies, inform policing approaches and interventions, and policy proposals which were evidenced based.

To improve oversight and accountability, areas requiring further attention was for CSP to develop a comprehensive monitoring evaluation framework for monitoring police performance which should be presented to the Committee, improved collaboration with provincial legislatures, provincial secretariats and provincial departments of community safety to enhance accountability mechanisms at provincial level, collaboration with national structures to enhance reporting arrangements and strengthening oversight of municipal policing services at local level.

On the prevention and combating of torture, legislation was adopted in 2013 and according to international obligations the state was required to ensure prompt investigations, administrative measures to ensure safe custody, prevent prisoner on prisoner violence, provide redress, education of custodial health and medical practitioners and effective and regular oversight. It was recommended there was interaction between SAPS and the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services, to review the SAPS strategy to combat and prevent torture in terms of alignment with responsibilities under the Convention against Torture (CAT), specifically, the process and procedures for complaints of persons in police custody, review of rules of interrogation, the prohibition of use of certain equipment, regular and independent visits to police detention cells, training on the new act and the prevention of torture and to review the IPID classification of torture and capacitation of IPID investigators.

On policing public order, it was recommended to align policing practice with international human rights standards on the use of force. The current policy on ‘Public Order Management’ should be reviewed and aligned with international and regional best practice and ‘Use of Force Policy’ and recommendations due from the Farlam Commission and for challenges in the implementation of the Regulation of Gatherings Act to be investigated.

Looking at the use of force, there were unacceptably high levels of allegations of police brutality which required intervention by policy makers and police management. It was recommended the CSP development of a revised policy on the Use of Force be urgently completed. SAPS should urgently address the alignment of national instructions, training of police members and procedural measures including review mechanisms to provide support, training and where appropriate sanctions. IPID should be capacitated and trained to investigate the excessive use of force allegations. To capacitate the police and oversight bodies, it was recommended the Committee be briefed on training programmes of SAPS members including Human Rights Training, the calibre and capacity (training and equipping) of IPID investigators should be urgently addressed and the CSP should develop collaborations/partnerships with academic and research institutions to enhance its research capacity. For a new policing agenda, the White Paper on Policing provided a critical opportunity to align the current policing and strategic framework for policing in SA. It was critical that this policy address key challenges in policing and provide clear policy direction on interventions required. These policy interventions, recommendations by oversight bodies including those of Portfolio Committees, need to be integrated systematically into strategic and annual plans and reports. Finally, looking at PSIRA, accountability and oversight mechanisms in PSIRA need to be strengthened. It was critical, that new legislation, regulatory and institutional mechanisms address the need for greater accountability and reporting on transgressions by the sector – including data on offences by security officers including domestic violence, deaths / and use of fire arms/use of force/ and regulation of issue and use of equipment by the industry.

Ndifuna Ukwazi (NU) and the Social Justice Coalition (SJC) submission
Ms Phumeza Mlungwana, SJC General Secretary, began by explaining to Members the organisational background noting that the SJC was a democratic mass-member based social movement campaigning for safe, healthy and dignified communities through branches in largely poor and informal communities. Ndifuna Ukwazi (NU) research and learning initiatives were directed at supporting the work of community-based organisations, helping people know their rights and engage actively with the police. The current partners of the organisations included SAPS in Khayelitsha and provincial management, community-based organisations, social movements, NGOs, the Western Cape Department of Community Safety and academic institutions.

Ms Mlungwana provided context, saying that Khayelitsha was a black African township in Cape Town with a median income of R1600 per month. Households were 38% formal, 15% in backyards and 46% in shacks. Of the area’s young adults between the ages of 20 and 29, 40% were unemployed and only 45% had completed high school. 1 in 3 people had no direct access to water, 1 in 4 had no access to a flush toilet and 1 in 5 had no access to electricity or refuse collection.

To SJC and NU, safety meant feeling safe in your home, in the street, on public transport, in school or at work and the ability to access basic infrastructure such as housing, toilets, parks and sports facilities. She then took the Committee through crime stats for reported crimes per 100 000 people in 2013/14 comparing Khayelitsha to the rest of SA.

SAPS had a constitutional mandate, in terms of section 205(3) to prevent, combat and investigate crime, to maintain public order, to protect and secure the inhabitants of the Republic and their property, and to uphold and enforce the law. Section 195 bound SAPS to the following principles:
- Use resources efficiently, effectively and economically;
- Provide fair and equal services;
- Promote and maintain a high standard of professional ethics;
- Be responsive to the needs of the public; and
- Be accountable and transparent.

In terms of the SAPS Act, section 11(2) stated the National Commissioner shall develop a plan setting out objectives and priorities for the following financial year, determine the fixed establishment of SAPS and the number and grading of posts and determine the distribution of the numerical strength of the Service. Section 12(3) stated that a Provincial Commissioner may determine the distribution of the strength of the service under his/her jurisdiction among different areas, station areas, offices and units. The Equality Act said, in terms of Section 24(1) “The state has a duty and responsibility to promote and achieve equality” while Section 25(4) said “All Ministers must implement measures within the available resources which are aimed at the achievement of equality…by (a) eliminating any form of unfair discrimination or the perpetuation of inequality and (b) preparing and implementing equality plans…the contents of which must include a timeframe for implementation…”

Ms Mlungwana outlined the 2015/16 budget for the country and SAPS in particular per programme of the Department. In terms of resource allocation, using data submitted by SAPS to the Khayelitsha Commission of Inquiry (2014), Cape Town demonstrated the effect of an ‘irrational’ allocation of human resources where areas with the lowest police to population ratio had the highest number of murders. The 15 safest stations with a total of 21 murders in 2013/14, which also benefited from private security, had on average one police officer for every 232 people while the 15 most unsafe stations with a total of 1 478 murders in 2013/14 had on average only one police officer for every 1 153 people. In terms of personnel, compensation of employees equalled roughly 75% of 2015/16 budget. Employee numbers stabilised from 2014/15 but the budget continued to rise. The Khayelitsha Commission found that the allocation of human resources was fundamentally ‘irrational’ and there were question around critical posts being filled. With vehicles, evidence submitted to the Khayelitsha Commission showed that there were not enough operational vehicles in Khayelitsha. Long repair turnaround times meant not enough assigned vehicles were operational. The Commission found there was often only one officer and one vehicle assigned to a sector and since the Commission, Khayelitsha had received new vehicles but there was uncertainty about the status of other stations in poor communities with high levels of crime.

Mr Zackie Achmat, Ndifuna Ukwazi Director, spoke about police stations noting that SAPS had consistently been unable to complete planned facilities projects on time. In 2013/14 SAPS only achieved 81.1% of planned projects. The Commission found urgent attention needed to be given to physical infrastructure, for example in Lingelethu West, there were no holding cells, no exhibit store and not enough space for detectives. With information technology, there was a failure to adequately monitor and implement the IT contract. The previous Committee found that many systems had been installed but not linked to the CJS for e-dockets. For the Firearm Control System, R342 million was paid to Waymark between 2004 and 2012 with nothing delivered. With detective services, the Khayelitsha Commission found detectives in Khayelitsha carry an average of 150 dockets. The Resource Allocation Guide (RAG) was inadequate because it did not take into account the seriousness of crime.

It was recommended that for equity and equality, work needed to be started immediately on a plan to reallocate current resources. SAPS must report to Parliament on what was being done to support the 10 most under-resourced stations in each province. New recruits should be deployed to stations where officers had the time and ability to provide mentorship and more officers were needed to patrol informal areas. With performance indicators, reduction of crime statistics should not be a performance indicator due to underreporting and detection. Conviction rates were the most important indicators. With facilities and police stations, SAPS must provide detailed information on current facilities projects, including expected start and end dates and how it planned to ensure that projects are completed within the planned schedule. SAPS must make information available on the current condition of stations including which stations did not have access to water and sanitation. Projects must be prioritised for stations in areas with the most crime, and which may not benefit from other safety layers, such as private security. In terms of Information Technology, SAPS must provide a detailed report on the status of current IT contracts and budgets needed to be conditional on consequences for PFMA violations. With Community Centred Policing, the Civilian Secretariat should provide knowledge and resources to CPFs, community score cards should be introduced to measure community satisfaction and SAPS must work with the CPF and other local structures to update sector profiles, including maps. In terms of Detective Services, detectives needed support, resources needed to be deployed to stations which needed them the most and an investigation should take place to address shortcomings considering all factors, including conditions of service and recruitment systems. For the Family Violence, Child Protection and Sexual Offences Unit, an audit should be conducted to assess the needs of FCS units in the most affected stations and FCS commanders needed to have the same rank as Station Commanders. Finally with vacancies, a proper assessment of the visible policing needs of stations needed to be done, in consultation with cluster commanders to address how many allocated vehicles were actually operational.

Discussion
Mr Mbhele asked the Social Justice Coalition (SJC) that when it presented results about unequal resource allocation to SAPS, what feedback did it receive.

Ms Molebatsi said if people in the police force were traumatised by daily experiences, there was a programme in SAPS where officers can go for a debriefing after such incidents. She asked what else can be done.

The Chairperson asked if SJC picked up any issues on the inspectorate of the police stations. He asked if the community was aware of the Independent Police Investigative Directorate availability and use. He asked if the Civilian Secretariat has the necessary leadership capacity and skills at a national level to succeed with their job description.

Mr Achmat replied that one of the commissioners interviewed said it was fundamentally irrational on resource allocation. No one gave a guiding document on how resource allocation was decided. Trauma counselling was not used. There was one social worker for eight police stations for about 600 police officers. It was voluntary to go for debriefing. It should be compulsory.

Ms Mlungwana added that the trauma counselling services were better used if these were provided by a private institution. The officers do not trust the confidentiality of what they discussed because the person was internal. People do not really have an idea about IPID neither were they aware of it nor how they can access it. More so, SJC did not get proper results on the cases it reported to the IPID.

Ms Molebatsi asked if it was about lack of awareness of IPID or due to the perceived ineffectiveness of IPID.

Ms Mlungwana replied that it was both because people were not aware of IPID to report such cases. The level of perceived ineffectiveness was based on the cases reported to IPID. There was a lot of police misconduct and some people reported a police officer to another police officer which does not work.

Mr Achmat said that the police inspectorate reports were excellent in terms of identifying the problems. The problem with the reports however was that it gives the station commander 100 things to fix instead of saying strategically fix five items per year. As a result, the inspectorate keeps on identifying the same things because there was no concept of strategic management in fixing the problems.

Ms Dugmore replied that the Civilian Secretariat had functions of policy development and monitoring. It was a fairly new institution trying to find its footing and there were challenges in establishing provincial secretariats. The secretariat should not be really involved in doing research, but collating information from the inspectorate and from other legislative research institutions. The secretariat needs to understand what its monitoring framework should include. Tertiary institutions were willing to engage in research without any monetary compensation. It was supposed to developed its research priorities and enter into memoranda of understanding with tertiary institutions.

The Chairperson asked if civil society identified any glaring gaps in the new White Paper that the Committee must attend to.

Ms Dugmore replied that she was looking forward to making a submission to the Committee. The problem statement was not accurately stated which means interventions that flow from it may not be that good. It needs to be aligning discipline with the code of conduct, civilian regulations and the NDP.

Mr Mbhele said that in the report on inquiry in the Western Cape it was noted that Khayelitsha was understaffed likely due to the irrational resource allocation. 600 more police were required in the province as a whole. He asked if civil society has any plans to ensure that the resources land in Khayelitsha.

Mr Achmat replied that based on the old irrational guide, Khayelitsha was short with a couple of hundred officers as it was supposed to have 900 officers, but had only 600. After the inspectorate report, new constables were deployed. That is a problem because the detective or station commander has to mentor people with six months training instead of shifting the people with experience somewhere; there was no strategic thinking in such allocation.

Meeting adjourned because of a planned power outage.