Top cop Jackie Selebi faces 15 years in jail, but was cleared of corruption four years ago. The clout of the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD), which investigates police offences, has come into question as a result.
Top cop Jackie Selebi faces 15 years in jail, but was cleared of corruption four years ago. The clout of the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD), which investigates police offences, has come into question as a result.
A proposed new Bill under way in Parliament may see the ICD change its name to the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID).
The idea is for the new police watchdog to function independently from the police by having its own investigators and budget and to report to Parliament through the Police Minister.
Rape, torture, assault and death at the hands of police officers will be prioritised for investigation. By law, police will also have to report these crimes, whether committed by a police officer or by other detainees in police custody.
ICD national spokesperson Moses Dlamini says that where the ICD was complaints-driven, the IPID will focus on investigations.
If passed, he says the Act will compel police management to implement recommendations by telling the IPID how they will punish an offending officer.
The police, however, are not obliged to apply advice. “The ICD or IPID cannot discipline errant police officers,” Dlamini emphasised that police should stay independent and solve matters internally.
Well-intentioned legislation and a move in the right direction is how Derek Luyt, Head of Media and Advocacy at the Public Service Accountability Monitor (PSAM) sees the Bill.
But he is worried about whether politicians and senior management will implement recommendations. “What happens if that action is not taken?
And that’s what’s been happening over and over and over in this country,” he said. His suggestion is that responsible managers must ensure that charges are made, and, if not done within a week, the manager themselves should go to jail.
“This might end up as another toothless body,” he said, referring to groups like the Human Rights Commission and Public Service Commission that can also only make suggestions.
“Because recommendations are not implemented, people are losing respect for them,” he said. He also sees the capacity of the new body in terms of skills and numbers of trained investigators as “highly questionable”.
Dlamini says there will be no change in where the public report cases against the police. The first port of call is the police, whose management deals with matters internally.
Serious crimes like corruption, rape, and torture at the hands of police officers can be reported directly to the ICD/IPID.
Parliament is still addressing issues in the Bill after public hearings two weeks ago, and according to Dlamini, it has already undergone some changes. He was however, not able to say when the Bill would be shelved.
