COMMENT BY HON PAT LEKKER (ANC MPL): APPOINTMENT OF PIKOLI AS WESTERN CAPE POLICE OMBUDSMAN

The appointment of Advocate Pikoli is nothing else but a sycophantic reward for the services rendered in the Khayelitsha Commission. Impartial human resource processes were flouted with a justification that appointment powers are said to reside with the premier (see report).

Does this mean there is no-one out there who possesses the requisite skills and experience who could have performed this job well, or it is another job creation for friends of the Democratic Alliance? The ANC will be keeping a close eye on emerging developments, hoping that the DA will not depose of him, if and when, he refuses to toe the line that the Federal system will demand of him.

The problems identified in the police service run much deeper than the histrionic establishment of the Ombudsman office. This contention is further qualified by the Western Cape crime statistics which reveal that contributing factors that hinder the efficiency of the police as follows: socio-economic conditions, densely populated informal settlements and environmental design. 

Advocate Pikoli is no miracle worker and as such does not have divine power to modify these factors, he is not the Messiah.

Statement issued by Pat Lekker MPL, ANC Western Cape, October 24 2014

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