Madam Deputy Speaker, according to the reports I have received, the arrest was made by the local Rosebank police station after the investigating officer from Mpumalanga had waited for more than two hours at the Rosebank station for the person to hand themselves over to the police. When the suspect failed to present himself to the investigating officer, two other officers proceeded in one vehicle to this person's place of work, where a commotion broke out and other vehicles were dispatched to establish the problem. The costs for any arrest are not calculated on an individual basis, but are part of the SAPS's operational budget.
There was no impact on the general duties of the SAPS as the dispatched vehicles hardly spent 10 minutes at the scene after this person was arrested. The person in question was arrested on charges of fraud and forgery after a case was opened in Mpumalanga.
The person's lawyer was present at the time of arrest and, therefore, there was no time delay in contacting his lawyer. The National commissioner is not informed every time the police effect an arrest. Therefore, on this matter it was not required for the investigating officer to first inform National Commissioner Gen Cele. As such the national commissioner was not informed and this should be an obvious thing. Every investigating officer has the powers and authority to effect an arrest after a docket has been opened, and this instance was no different. Thank you.
In January, two and half years ago, Adv Gerrie Nel who, at the time, was head of the Scorpions in Gauteng, was arrested in exactly the same manner as the Sunday Times journalist Mzilikazi Wa Afrika was arrested just one month ago.
In the first instance it was to protect the now disgraced ex-National Police Commissioner, Jackie Selebi. Then it took 20 armed police officers to serve the warrant of arrest on Adv Nel. It took the same number to swoop on Mr Wa Afrika, an unarmed journalist. Adv Nel was driven around all night in an attempt to intimidate him and his cellphone was taken. Mr Wa Afrika was driven around, and despite many of us searching throughout the night, we were unable to locate him as we faced what seemed to be deliberate obstruction on the part of the Hawks. His cellphone was also taken.
Mr Wa Afrika was one of the authors of a story published just two days before about the dodgy rental of new police headquarters. Minister, the arrest of this journalist, in many eyes, has negated gains we made during the Fifa World Cup. Would you explain who exactly was behind the extraordinary arrest and assure this House that this jackboot intimidatory policing is not making a comeback in this country? [Time expired.]
Hon Deputy Speaker, I do not know which part of the answer the hon member does not get, because the issue here is that a human being was arrested. After that arrest, charges were levelled against the individual and, by the way, he is not the only person who was arrested on that charge for that particular incident. She chooses to omit one of the two people who were arrested and I do not know why.
The fact of the matter is that, if you are arrested and you are being charged, face the music and do not let a Member of Parliament represent your case because someone else is not represented. Thank you very much. [Applause.]
Thank you, Deputy Speaker. Hon Minister, there is a lot of fuss being made about the arrest of this Mzilikazi. Could you respond as to why there should be this sensationalism when two other people were arrested with the reporter? Why is the DA only mentioning one person, as if the others were not human beings? Thank you.
Thank you, hon Deputy Speaker. The question posed by the member, I think, should be directed to where it comes from, not to the Minister, because I am as baffled as you are. Let me say that the individuals concerned were given bail of R5 000 each because of what they were arrested for, both of them individually. Both of them have had their passports confiscated, but we are still to hear someone representing the other individual. Maybe he is not that important. I don't know. I am assuming, hon member.
Thank you, hon Speaker. Hon Minister, this apartheid-style display of excessive power and massing of police cars to arrest unarmed civilians is not consistent with the democracy we have evolved into. My question to you is: Do you encourage that type of abuse of power?
Your question is very simple, hon member. I am supposed to say no and sit down, because it is a very simple question. The issue here is that I explained that an investigating officer was sent and was made to wait for more than two hours. He took it to heart having had to wait two hours. But when he wanted to effect an arrest, the police were told that the person concerned would hand himself over, hence those two hours. The police then tried to effect an arrest. I hope you will agree with me, hon member: Nobody is allowed to obstruct that particular process. That is when the investigating officer called for others to come and help him because there was a commotion. There was resistance to arrest. Do you support resistance to arrest, hon member? You won't support that, I assume. I thank you.
Hon Minister, there is a protocol, as I understand it, entered into between the police, the department and your Ministry on the one hand, and the National Prosecuting Authority and the SA National Editors' Forum, Sanef, on the other, on the kind of processes that need to be followed as and when there are going to be arrests of media people.
So, this is not so much that they should be treated in a special way. In our view, the protocol, as outlined, was not followed in dealing with the issue. Could you indicate whether or not the protocol was followed and, if it wasn't followed, what was the problem in following that particular protocol?
Thank you, hon Deputy Speaker. As I explained, hon member, even after that protocol we reported in this House some two months ago that we were going to further engage Sanef. Whatever we agreed on, it does not involve forgery and fraud. So, it falls outside of that. But over and above that and keeping that protocol in mind, the police were very patient - you would agree with me - as they waited for more than two hours for a person, being shunted from pillar to post. What else were the police supposed to do? We took cognisance of everything and we were very patient and gentle with the gentleman concerned. [Interjections.] Thank you very much. [Applause.]
Position regarding compliance with procurement policies in procuring new SAPS headquarters
178. Mr L Ramatlakane (Cope) asked the Minister of Police:
Whether procurement policies and tender requirements have been duly complied with in procuring the new SA Police Service headquarters; if not, why not; if so, what are the relevant details?