Police have not echoed the willingness shown by the Scorpions to work together and create mechanisms to do so, it emerged on the final day of public hearings at the Khampepe Commission in Pretoria.
”We believe no number of committees can solve the problems until the institutional and constitutional problems have been solved,” advocate Philip Jacobs for the South African Police Service (SAPS) told the commission on Thursday.
He reiterated and supported the views of Justice Minister Brigitte Mabandla that the SAPS’s relationship with the Scorpions had ”irretrievably broken down”.
This was after proposals were made by Scorpions head Leonard McCarthy to establish a working committee to deal with problems of cooperation and coordination, as well as willingness to undergo possible mediation to solve personality clashes.
McCarthy made certain concessions regarding the sharing of information, training and technology.
”We should be able to sit down and share our threat analysis and find a way to amalgamate them,” he said, suggesting a central crime database and an agreement on what joint tasks must be pursued.
”Leadership must walk the same walk and speak the same language,” McCarthy said.
He was very open to an audit that would determine where certain equipment and skills were and how they should be used.
The SAPS however stuck to its original submission, maintaining the Directorate of Special Operations (DSO) was intended to be temporary and that its relocation to the police was the best option.
Commissioner judge Sisi Khampepe asked the SAPS to bring before the commission possible suggestions for a working relationship, should the relocation not take place.
She mentioned that the director general of the National Intelligence Agency had ”without hesitation” made a commitment to addressing relationship problems.
McCarthy told the South African Press Association he would not comment on Thursday’s submissions by the SAPS.
The DSO has concluded its submissions, thus wrapping up the public hearings and oral submissions to the Khampepe Commission into the Scorpions’ future.
The DSO submission recommended it stay where it is, that the ministerial coordinating committee do its work and that certain legislative amendments are made to assist this committee in working better.
It also submitted that minor legislative adjustments be made to deal with concerns relating to its information gathering and intelligence gathering capacity.
McCarthy earlier explained that tensions existing between the SAPS and the DSO could be ascribed to jurisdictional jealousy.
Before the SAPS made its final comments, McCarthy suggested law enforcement agencies had been brought ”back to earth” regarding their collective responsibility to South Africans.
”It took the commission to bring us back to earth and remind us of that,” he said.
The vetting of special investigators before they are employed by the DSO was brought up by George Bizos, SC, representing the National Intelligence Agency (NIA).
McCarthy assured the commission that 243 of the 281 special investigators had been vetted and the others were being dealt with.
However he submitted he was not perfectly happy with the way vetting had been dealt with and blame could be laid on both parties.
It now remains for Khampepe to consider the submissions she has received before handing over a report to President Thabo Mbeki, advising him on the future of the elite crime-busting unit. – Sapa