Hon Chair, the South African Constitution requires in section 208 for the civilian secretariat to function under the direction of the Minister. It is designated as a department at the national level in its own right with its own budget. The secretary will be the accounting officer from now onwards.
It is worth taking a moment to underscore clause 4(4) of the Bill which reads:
The Civilian Secretariat ... must exercise its powers and perform its functions without fear, favour or prejudice in the interest of maintaining effective and efficient policing and a high standard of professional ethics in the police service.
This provision, read in conjunction with clause 4(6) in the Bill, provides that the secretariat will obtain its budget from money appropriated by Parliament, giving the secretariat the autonomy to function independently of the police.
This is indeed a very healthy development. The only question that we have is whether this autonomy will last. A few years ago, we were all very excited about the creation of the Scorpions, but it was too good to last. If the civilian secretariat functions too well, it may also be disbanded, not because it does not answer the needs of South Africans, but because it does not suit the ruling party.
The civilian secretariat is mandated in this Bill to give strategic advice to the Minister in respect of developing and implementing policies. I believe that the Minister is duty-bound to report to Parliament as to what he makes of the strategic advice he is given. While it will be his right to take advice or decline it, we will need to know because it is our function to exercise oversight over the Minister.
The fact that this Bill requires in clause 6(2)(a)(1) for the civilian secretariat to conduct research into policing matters and to establish competencies means that the Minister will be getting advice on the basis of research.
The creation of the resource information centre is very welcome. Just as welcome, is the fact that the civilian secretariat must conduct quality assessment of the Police Service, identify problem areas for early interventions and help develop best practice models.
For South Africans who are punch-drunk from being attacked by criminals, it is important that the civilian secretariat continues to recommend steps for improved service delivery and police effectiveness. If this is done satisfactorily, the public will endorse the secretariat.
If this fails, the public will have nowhere else to turn. So, the secretariat is one of the important structures in our country. I see my time has expired, Chair. What I want to say, which must be addressed by the Minister, is that, funds permitting, the secretariat must be given more powers, especially in the provinces. At the moment, there are limits. Cope will support the Bill. Thank you very much. [Time expired.]