Thank you, Chairperson; if you behave you get 20 minutes. Hon Chairperson, hon Minister, hon Deputy Minister, hon Members of the House, unlike last year, I would like to start off with what I've got to say before I react to what the opposition had to say.
Even the most pessimistic and negative amongst us will find it difficult to ignore the progress made in addressing crime and transforming the SA Police Service that we have. The number of active police officers has increased significantly, and trust by communities in the police has improved to such an extent that community involvement in the fight against crime now forms part of one of the pillars of our crime-fighting strategy. The SA Police Service has been modernised, not only in regard to the equipment it is using, but also in terms of the approach it has adopted in combating crime.
We have an ANC government which is committed to putting an end to the high levels of crime and which demonstrates that commitment with a handsome budget that has been allocated to the Police Service. We have a crime- fighting strategy developed by the ANC that is integrated not only within in the cluster, but that is extended to other critical role-players, such as the Departments of Basic Education, of Economic Development and of Social Development.
Last year during this debate I indicated that in the ANC we believe that crime is not an event, but a process and that in order to be effective and to want to successfully fight crime, you need to disrupt the process at as many levels as possible. It is therefore clear that the numbers game or throwing more resources at the problem will not solve the issue. What is required is that every role-player within the crime-fighting chain, from the community amongst whom the criminal might live, right through to the prosecutor seeking justice, should play their part to the best of their ability. We indicated that it starts with the police officer who takes the call from the victim, the first officer arriving at the scene, securing the crime scene, the crime scene investigator who must make sure that all the evidence is collated at the scene, the detective following up on the leads, forensics, ballistics, our DNA laboratories, the Criminal Record Centre, and the fingerprint experts playing their role in building a strong case against an accused that can result in successful prosecution.
I'm dealing with two programmes here, namely Programme 3: Detective Services, and Programme 4: Crime Intelligence. Detective Services receives R9,8 billion of the R58 billion of the overall budget. That will increase to R11,4 billion in the outer financial year - 2013-14. While we appreciate this increase, we believe - as some of the members have said - that more needs to be spent on Detective Services specifically. Crime Intelligence receives R2,1 billion, and in 2013-14 its budget will increase to R2,4 billion.
Last year during this debate we indicated that we needed to determine what the ideal number of detectives should be in relation to the nature of crimes, the strength of the Police Service, the allocation of resources, and any other determining factor. The department indicated to us that that arrangement is expected by October this year, and if it's finalised earlier it will be provided to the committee by then. We believe that it is important to determine this so as to ensure that we achieve that figure and then retain it.
The department did indicate that it was identifying suitable detective candidates during the basic training phase through a battery of tests. For the previous financial year, a total of 252 successful candidates underwent training at the Graaff-Reinet training institution. They are now placed at stations under a mentor for a period of nine months. The department further indicated that, as a result of input by the portfolio committee, the mentorship programmes have now been formalised.
We have often raised concerns regarding the loss and the shortage of experienced detectives at station level. The ANC would therefore like to welcome the fact that the policy to retain experienced detectives has been developed and will now be implemented. According to this policy, experienced detectives who find themselves in management positions will now be able to be reinstated as detectives at the same salary level they earned as managers. We want to thank the Minister for introducing this policy. We have long been arguing that we should make it possible for a detective to be promoted within the detective environment without moving into management: scale promotion without the necessary rank promotion. The ANC believes that this will go a long way in retaining experienced detectives. The monitoring of detectives will be improved over this financial year, with quarterly reviews. The training of branch commanders will also receive attention so as to properly capacitate them and improve the command and control at this level. We welcome this as we believe it will go a long way in making sure that more effective services are received from detectives.
Furthermore, a booklet of the crime scene investigation manual was developed and should be finalised by the end of October. This booklet will be distributed to all provinces for utilisation by members who attend a crime scene. We welcome this initiative, but believe that distributing the booklet alone will not have the desired effect, but that there should be workshops on the booklet, continual work with crime scene investigators and with the people first on the scene.
There remain challenges within the detective environment, none more so than an equal distribution of resources within this environment to specifically the rural areas, but it is clear that we are moving in the right direction. The ANC believes that these interventions will bear fruit and that we will soon see and experience an increase in the conviction rate.
In support of the work of the detectives, is the work of the forensic science laboratories and the Criminal Record Centre. Both the Minister and the chairperson have already highlighted some of the impressive progress that has been made in the field of specifically the forensic science laboratories. In addition, within the forensic science laboratories the environments that recorded the most significant declines in backlogs are the biology and ballistics environments with decreases of 82,2% and 81,55% respectively. This is something to appreciate.
I would like to focus on the Criminal Record Centre. The Criminal Record Centre has rearranged its working hours to work flexitime, which has helped to finalise backlogs. The Criminal Record Centre is now working on a 24- hour basis. The waiting period for finalisation of fingerprint checks used to be more than 30 days, but is now down to 14 days. During the month of March the Criminal Record Centre was able to clear the entire firearm backlog and processed more than 78 000 fingerprint records. Now, I don't care how desperate you are to get votes, this is an impressive feat in any person's book and deserves acknowledgement. We ask of Gen Pahlane and his team not to lift their feet from the accelerator. We will be closely monitoring them to ensure that they continue with their excellent performance.
Crime intelligence has made significant contributions to the fight against crime. Some of the most significant of these is the arrest of individuals who planned to commit acts of terror in South Africa. Crime intelligence was instrumental in the indictment of couriers transporting drugs across our borders and the discovery of arms caches in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and the Western Cape. It is increasing the role that it plays in bringing to book those who are involved in rhino poaching, and has already achieved some success in this field.
Crime intelligence will increase its emphasis on intelligence operations specifically in the field of trio crimes, organised crimes involving drugs, vehicles, weapons, diamonds, human trafficking, corruption, commercial crimes and illicit mining.
As indicated previously, we believe that intelligence should be strengthened and should form an integral part of policing. It should be the nodal point of policing. In this regard, more can be done to improve the capacity at specifically the station level. One must note, however, that in 2011-12, 783 entry-level personnel will be appointed. The division will be further strengthened with technology to match the sophistication of crime and criminal groups. We call on the Minister and management to ensure that the current situation that we are experiencing within crime intelligence does not impact on the good work that this division should be doing. Let me turn to the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, or the Hawks, as they are known. You had better end that and start listening now. As expected, the hon Kohler-Barnard was making huge noise around the Constitutional Court ruling, entertaining this House with her own interpretation of the ruling. Let me say from the outset that the ANC respects the ruling of the Constitutional Court and will ensure that they adhere to the 18-month deadline. But to create the impression that the court indicated that we have to re-establish the Scorpions is not only disingenuous, it is blatantly misleading. The Constitutional Court found that it was within the power of Parliament to establish an anticorruption unit in the SA Police Service. The Constitution does not prescribe to Parliament where to locate this unit.
Furthermore, the court found that the decision by Parliament to disband the Directorate of Special Operations and establish the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation within the SAPS was entirely consistent with the objectives of the SA Police Service as set out in the Constitution, in section 205(3).
The Constitutional Court also ruled in favour of Parliament and the public participation process that Parliament embarked upon during this process. I find it alarming that this hon member could stand here and say that every single public opinion, every legal institution, every advocate or lawyer, everybody who was against this was ignored, that all their opinions had been ignored.
I wonder whether the hon member attended, with us, the public hearings that we held during that period of time, where thousands of people - literally thousands of people - came to the public hearings supporting the disbandment of the Scorpions. The problem with the DA is that only those opinions in line with their own, they consider to be opinions.
I also don't understand why it is such a problem for the hon Kohler-Barnard as to who is going to police the police. If you listened to the figures that the Deputy Minister gave you, in terms of the rotten police officers, the police are more than capable of policing themselves. In the committee, we have put two oversight bodies in place: the Secretariat and the Independent Complaints Directorate to further strengthen that role.
The hon member Kohler-Barnard lowers the level of this debate. She has reduced a budget debate to a soapie. [Laughter.] Last year it was a soapie that involved the Minister. This year the main player in her soapie is Commissioner Cele. She is not contributing to the very important debate on how we spend the budget of the police. She is failing the people who put her in this Parliament. [Applause.] I have never seen a more confused person in my life. [Laughter.] She started her speech with the meltdown of the Police Service, and ended by thanking the SAPS for the stunning job they had done. Eish! On corruption, she talks about Mdluli, Cele, Mtimkulu, Tshabalala, but what about the Du Toits, the Meyers, etc? [Applause.] I smell a rat, and the rat is called racism. [Interjections.]
Regarding the Minister's performance agreement: hon Kohler-Barnard, I watched you when the chairperson said that we had said last year already, before the Minister signed his performance agreement, that we rejected these figures. It is in this report of us; it is in there that the committee rejects these figures. Yet, you sat there! You listened! You nodded your head! But when you stood up, it was part of your drama, it was part of your script: You couldn't even leave it out.
Regarding Police Day, I hope the more than 190 000 plus police officers listened. There is no appreciation. It is not right that we show no appreciation for the police. We can argue about whether it is the best way to do so, but give us alternatives; provide us with alternatives. [Interjections.] When? You had the opportunity to do so and you did not do it.
Hon Kohler-Barnard, if you have any idea or any information about irregularities around the Police Day, provide it to the committee. Let us look at it. You yourself acknowledged that the chairperson does not shy away from those things.
The Public Protector report is another one of these playing-to-the-gallery issues that I absolutely don't understand. The hon member was part of the committee when that decision was taken. In fact, I think minutes will reveal that the hon member actually seconded the suggestions. I am trying to remember who actually proposed it. The hon Greg Schneemann proposed it, and the hon member Kohler-Barnard seconded that we wait for the second report and that we deal with the two reports correctly. [Interjections.]
Chairperson, the hon Kohler-Barnard must calm down; I am not done yet. The court did express itself on the independence of the Hawks, and specifically had reservations regarding the role of the ministerial committee, and that the decision to involve prosecutors would lie with the National Commissioner. It furthermore had concerns regarding the security of tenure of the staff of the Hawks. These are issues that we must address within the next 18 months, and the ANC is committed to addressing them.
The court gave Parliament 18 months to remedy the defects. That deadline will be met and in the meantime the Hawks will continue with what they do best - making life for criminals unbearable.
There is a virus going around. It is especially harmful during an election year. It results in normally rational individuals becoming irrational and arguing in an incoherent manner. The hon Kohler-Barnard must relax; I am not talking about her. I did say "normally constructive" individuals. During the virus season, in the absence of substance of their own, they look for a horse to flog. As a result of the emotional impact of crime, they exploit that emotional trauma and flog the police. They lose the ability to look objectively at progress made; to recognise and evaluate that progress; and to give credit where credit is due.
I would like to welcome the hon Leonard Ramatlakane to this debate, but also to this committee. I need to make use of this opportunity to welcome him, because I am not sure how long he will be there before the court will rule that the other Cope must come back. [Laughter.]
The hon Ramatlakane had quite a number of questions that he asked the Minister, but I have one question that I want to ask him. I want to ask him whether the hon Mr George assisted him with his speech. [Laughter.]
Chairperson, the ANC will continue to look objectively at our performance within the department. Our focus will remain to do thorough oversight without fear or favour. We will acknowledge progress and excellence. Aristotle said, and I quote: "We are what we repeatedly do; excellence then, is not an act but a habit."
All of us, politicians and officials, management and the most junior of police officers, the community, young and old, should live by the wise words of Gandhi: "We must become the change we wish to see in the world." I thank you. [Applause.]