Civil society organisations have raised concerns about rampant corruption within the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the broader criminal justice system, calling on Parliament’s ad hoc committee to take decisive action to address systemic dysfunction.

Speaking before the committee on Tuesday, Advocate Paul Hoffman SC, Director of Accountability Now, warned that South Africa’s criminal justice system remains deeply dysfunctional, undermined by corruption and a culture of impunity that continues to erode public trust.

Advocate Hoffman pointed directly to the lack of effective measures to combat corruption, which he claimed is at the heart of the country’s justice system failures.

“The nub of the problem is that the criminal justice administration in South Africa is dysfunctional because corruption with impunity is rampant in the land,” Hoffman said.

Hoffman referenced the 2011 Glenister 2 case, in which the Constitutional Court ruled that South African law demands a body outside of executive control to effectively fight corruption. Hoffman told the committee that the ruling had yet to be fully implemented.

“Our law demands a body, not several bodies, but a body outside executive control to deal with corruption,” Hoffman said.

He noted that despite the ruling, the Hawks, the body created to investigate serious crimes, continue to struggle with corruption due to their dependence on the Ministry of Police.

“The Hawks are not a body outside executive control,” Hoffman pointed out, explaining that the continued political influence over the Hawks hampers their ability to take effective action against corruption.

Hoffman also criticised the 2009 closure of the Directorate of Special Operations (DSO), known as the Scorpions, which had been particularly successful in investigating high-level corruption.

He called the closure a “mistake” and argued that the Hawks, which replaced the DSO, have not been able to replicate its successes.

“The reason why we are here is that a member of the executive, the Minister of Police, saw fit to issue a directive purporting to close down the political killings task team, which by its very nature is a body that deals with corruption,” Hoffman said.

Hoffman also criticised the ongoing influence of the executive over the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA). He explained that, despite claims of independence, the NPA is heavily influenced by the Minister of Justice, who has the power to veto key decisions. “The Minister has final responsibility over the NPA’s policies,” Hoffman said.

He called this a clear conflict of interest that hinders the body’s ability to operate independently and tackle high-level corruption

Highlighting the negative effects of corruption, Hoffman explained that it not only undermines public trust in the criminal justice system but also contributes to the country’s economic stagnation. “Corruption is undoubtedly preventing the rapid economic growth of which South Africa is clearly capable,” he said.

He cited South Africa’s low ranking on Transparency International’s Corruption Perception Index, where the country ranks 80th out of 180 nations.

“This is below the average as well as well below the ratings of faster-growing economies like Rwanda and Botswana,” he noted.

To remedy the situation, Hoffman advocated for the creation of a new anti-corruption body, specifically a Chapter 9 institution, that would operate independently of the executive. He highlighted the proposal by Member of Parliament, Glynnis Breytenbach, to establish an Integrity Commission as a potential solution.

This would be a new, constitutionally sound mechanism for combating corruption, one that would be harder to dismantle due to the legal protections surrounding Chapter 9 institutions.

“To close down a Chapter 9 institution, you would have to persuade two-thirds of Parliament,” Hoffman said, noting that such an institution would be far more secure and independent than the current approach to tackling corruption

Meanwhile, Sean Tait, Director of the African Policing Civilian Oversight Forum, addressed the committee on the need for institutional reforms aimed at restoring public confidence in the criminal justice system.

Tait outlined two primary concerns: strengthening Parliament’s oversight functions and insulating SAPS’s operational command from executive interference.

He noted that allegations of political interference in policing, raised by senior police officers like Lt. General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi, have gone largely unaddressed by Parliament in the past. This, he said, highlighted the need for Parliament to respond more effectively to such concerns.

Tait suggested that Parliament must strengthen its capacity to respond to such issues, particularly in the context of a rapidly changing criminal justice landscape.

“We need to strengthen Parliament’s ability to respond effectively, particularly to allegations of political interference,” Tait said.

He called for the establishment of a subcommittee under the Portfolio Committee on Police, which would be tasked with scrutinising the relationship between the executive, SAPS, and other law enforcement agencies.

In addition to improving Parliament’s oversight capacity, Tait also recommended several legislative reforms to protect SAPS from political interference.

He argued that leadership appointments within SAPS should be made through a transparent, competitive process. “We need strengthened legislative provisions to ensure transparent and merit-based appointments to SAPS leadership,” Tait said.

He also emphasised the need for clearer separation of roles between the Minister of Police and the Commissioner of SAPS, to prevent conflicts of interest and ensure effective leadership.

Tait further proposed that SAPS management be required to maintain a formal register of all executive instructions, which would be available for Parliament and other oversight bodies to scrutinise.

“Executive instructions must be made in writing and entered into a formal register, which is available for review by Parliament,” Tait said. 

He also suggested that SAPS should be required to report any undue political interference through a defined process.

“SAPS management should be able to report in a structured and systemic way any instances where they feel there has been undue political interference,” he said.

Tait called for stronger performance management mechanisms within SAPS, IPID, and the Civilian Secretariat of Police, which should include specific indicators to measure responsiveness to allegations of corruption and political interference.

“We need to ensure that these indicators are built into their KPIs and can be tracked and engaged with by Parliament,” Tait said.

H also recommended that Parliament closely monitor the Crime Intelligence budget, ensuring that resources are allocated transparently and in line with government priorities.

He argued that there needs to be greater scrutiny of how funds are spent in Crime Intelligence, to prevent misuse.

“We must re-look at performance targets for Crime Intelligence and ensure they are aligned with national police priorities,” Tait said.

hope.ntanzi@iol.co.za 

IOL Politics 

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