Police portfolio committee to summon Minster Mchunu over inspectorate closure

The Portfolio Committee on Police wants to hear from police management regarding their desire to close their inspectorate division.

Minister of Police and National Commissioner General Fannie Masemola last week announced that the unit which handles complaints against police was to be closed.

Chairperson of the portfolio committee Ian Cameron said during a parliament briefing on Tuesday that the decision would be closely scrutinised.   

Inspectorate explanation sought

In giving an update on the committee’s progress, Cameron said they were receiving “hundreds of complaints” daily about police.

He explained that the committee had tried to address the complaints themselves, however, due to a lack of resources within police structures, the volume had become far too great.

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This experience had left him baffled as to why police would consider closing such a “critical” division.

“Given the significant role that this unit plays in terms of accountability, oversight and service delivery in the South African Police Service, the committee views this development as potentially detrimental,” Cameron said.

The committee chairperson expressed his disappointment at not being previously informed of the development around the inspectorate, and said he was curious to find out what alternatives were presented.

“To gain a comprehensive understanding of the rationale behind this proposed decision, the committee will summon the nation commissioner and the minister of police to provide a detailed explanation,” Cameron insisted.

Fight to restore confidence

Also on his agenda was alleged infighting within crime intelligence units at the national level.

He vowed to question senior intelligence managers “objectively”, but singled out the division for earlier-agreed-upon skills audits to streamline functionality.

Additionally, he stated his belief that police structures required better consequence management, saying that rogue officers and those implicated in wrongdoing were eroding public confidence.

Going forward, he targeted efforts aimed at identifying extortion kingpins, tackling the sources of gang violence and funding detective services as issues of importance.

In addressing budgetary limitations, Cameron suggested the relocation of non-essential expenditures such as “certain” VIP protection to other departments.

“We are deeply troubled by these ongoing challenges. Addressing these systemic issues is paramount to restoring confidence in law enforcement,” he concluded.

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