SAPS failures lets criminals slip through the cracks
The South African Police Service (SAPS) annual report has revealed that many cases are falling through the cracks of a disintegrating administrative system. The report shows that 58% of positive Incident Reports are not linked to dockets on the Case Administration System (CAS). This means that 58% of reports of attacks on citizens or theft from them, for example, logged via the 10111 line are simply not being documented.
While citizens believe that their cases are being investigated by a SAPS that costs them R62.4 billion per annum, the criminals will no doubt be delighted to hear that the majority of their activities are never even looked at by our ailing SAPS. Justice is not being served.
If dockets are not being opened on the CAS system then the crimes will never be investigated.
Administrative failures were also evident in other areas. The Auditor General is damning in reference to, for example, Programme 2: Visible Policing. Because of utter chaos in this area, he could not even verify the programme performance information due to an inadequate audit trail resulting from a "lack of administrative controls within the department".
The AG also found that commanders at station level did not exercise oversight to ensure that "entries occurred, were authorised and were captured". Again, reported cases may or may not actually be investigated even if one has gone to the trouble of reporting it at a SAPS station.
Against this background, it is bizarre that the SAPS failed to spend a massive R351 million on revamping the Criminal Justice System - the very system which is needed to provide us with accurate case information and statistics
The Police Minister must stop focusing on internal ANC politics and start paying attention to the Ministry he is paid to oversee. The AG's report is one of the most damning in a decade, and this Minister must step up and ensure that SAPS commanders instil discipline at their stations with regards to logging incident reports.
We live in one of the highest crime environments in the world, and we cannot afford to have a police service that continues to slip up on even the most basic duties.
Statement issued by Dianne Kohler Barnard MP, DA Shadow Minister of Police, September 30 2012
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