The executive director of the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organised Crime (GI-TOC) has told the Madlanga commission that South Africa needs to urgently vet senior police officials.
GI-TOC presented its recommendations on the commission’s final report, which is due on 16 November.
Mark Shaw, an expert witness at the commission with extensive experience in organised crime, public safety and criminal justice reform, presented the commission with an assessment of the legislative and institutional interventions required to reduce the organised criminal infiltration of South Africa’s criminal justice system.
He testified at the commission before its short break expected to resume on 15 September.
Shaw said the first phase of reform after the commission’s work should preserve the mandates and operations of the South African Police Service (SAPS), the Hawks, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (Idac), the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (Ipid), the intelligence services and correctional services.
He said the initial focus should be on correcting defects in strategy, personnel integrity, technical capacity, reporting and witness protections. The reform process, Shaw said, should address instability in the leadership of several of the institutions.
The national police commissioner, national head of the Hawks and director-general of the State Security Agency are serving in acting capacities. The position of head of Idac is vacant, while the inspector-general of intelligence is suspended.
“The commission should recommend the prompt and lawful appointment of suitably qualified persons,” Shaw said.
He noted that the country “lacks an extraordinary procedure for reassessing all incumbents in an institution where there is evidence that its personnel have been compromised on a large scale”.
Although SAPS and NPA assessments apply to selected senior or high-ranking officials, they do not require all incumbents in a compromised unit or task team to undergo an integrity assessment to qualify afresh.
The South African Police Service Amendment Bill, currently before parliament’s portfolio committee on police, proposes inserting a new section 28A into the SAPS Act. The amendment would strengthen screening for new appointees and introduce lifestyle audits for serving officers reasonably suspected of living beyond their legitimate income.
The bill is being contested mainly over whether the reasonable-suspicion threshold sets too low a bar for officials in service.
Shaw said the long-term utility of senior officers was questionable without continuous integrity controls that were applied periodically, rather than only when an irregularity triggered suspicion.
“South Africa also lacks legal mechanisms in respect of unexplained wealth. There is currently no law that provides for the civil forfeiture or confiscation of property owned or controlled by a public official where its value is disproportionate to the lawful income disclosed by that official under a mandatory vetting or integrity programme,” he said.
He recommended that the commission call for a time-limited reassessment of incumbents in institutions across the criminal justice system.
The process would include the NPA, SAPS, crime intelligence, the Hawks, Idac, Ipid, the intelligence services and correctional services.
“Its first stage would reassess heads of institutions, members of senior management and posts which involve sensitive intelligence, evidence, firearms, procurement, appointments or disciplinary powers,” Shaw said.
GI-TOC advised that subsequent phases could extend the reassessment to police departments or task teams where a pattern of misconduct linked to organised crime has been identified.
An independent panel was recommended to be established as a temporary statutory body to conduct the reassessments.
“While this commission should hear specialist evidence on the detailed design of the reassessment process, I am of the view that the prescribed criteria applied by the panel should, at a minimum, include an asset and income disclosure requirement significantly more rigorous than the [commission’s],” Shaw said.
He said financial disclosures by officials should extend to their spouses and dependants, as well as any trust, company or other vehicle in which they had a beneficial interest.
The reassessment should include independent verification of the accuracy and completeness of each disclosure, rather than merely recording receipt. Officials should also be required to explain any material discrepancy between their disclosed assets and income.
GI-TOC also recommended the establishment of an Organised Crime Council under the ministry of police. The council would bring together civil society organisations working on policing, academics, independent researchers and organised labour.
The council would seek to mobilise political will across government and civil society to drive the state’s response to organised crime while providing a forum for stakeholders outside government.
“In my opinion, there is an urgent need to establish an independent agency vested with the powers to investigate and institute proceedings in respect of offences relating to organised crime and criminal infiltration of state institutions,” Shaw said.
