Community Safety
With reference to the permanent position of the Western Cape Police Commissioner:
What (a) are the reasons for the withdrawal and re-advertisement of the post, (b) is the timeline to appoint a permanent Police Commissioner, (c) was the full cost of (i) advertising the initial vacancy and (ii) re-advertising the vacancy and (d) are the other applicable costs?
The South African Police Service informed me as follows:
(a) Following the conclusion of the selection process, for the post of the Provincial Commissioner: Western Cape, complaints were received. Over and above the complaints received, there was also no gender representation, as all the applicants were males. To mitigate the risk for the South African Police Service (SAPS), should a dispute emanate from the filling of the post, the National Commissioner decided not to fill the post, but to re-advertise the post of Provincial Commissioner: Western Cape.
(b) The post of the Provincial Commissioner: Western Cape, will be filled in the 2019/2020 financial year, before 31 March 2020.
(c) (i) The post was advertised, internally in the SAPS and no advertisement costs were incurred.
(ii) The post was re-advertised, internally in the SAPS and no advertisement costs were incurred.
(d) The other applicable costs were the travelling and subsistence costs of one member of the evaluation panel, who was a representative from the Office of the Premier: Western Cape, during the shortlisting and two-day assessment process. The accommodation and travelling and subsistence costs of the shortlisted candidates, for the two-day assessment process, was incurred from the budgets of their relevant offices.
However, when writing to Premier Winde on 28 October 2019, the SAPS did not express gender as a reason for re-advertising the post. SAPS indicated that the post would be re-advertised due to ‘complaints received’, which I believe points to political interference. For this reason, on 31 October 2019, I delivered an affidavit to the Office of the Public Protector. I previously condemned the re-advertisement as it pointed to top-level ANC interference in the management of SAPS and government recruitment processes.
On Friday, 8 November 2019, I received confirmation that the matter would be investigated by the National Office in Pretoria. I am pleased that this matter will be prioritised by the Public Protector with the seriousness it deserves. I have since welcomed the decision by the Office of Public Protector to investigate alleged political interference in the appointment of a Provincial Police Commissioner in the Western Cape. I hope that this investigation provides clear direction on addressing political interference in government recruitment processes.
According to Section 207 (3) of the Constitution of South Africa, ‘The National Commissioner, with the concurrence of the provincial executive, must appoint a woman or a man as the provincial commissioner for that province, but if the National Commissioner and the provincial executive are unable to agree on the appointment, the Cabinet member responsible for policing must mediate between the parties.’ It is on this basis that I have made my complaint.
As per the Constitution, only if there is disagreement on the appointment of the Provincial Commissioner between the National Commissioner and provincial executive must the Cabinet member responsible for policing [Minister Bheki Cele] mediate, or in this case re-advertise the position. I am on record for saying that there never was disagreement between the provincial executive and the National Commissioner over the appointment. There were, however, objections and allegations from the ANC’s Faiez Jacobs, who was not included in the panel.
