New campaign calls for review of appointment of top cops
A call has been made to review the ways in which the national police commissioner and Hawks head are appointed.
Corruption Watch and the Institute for Security Studies (ISS) launched a public awareness campaign focused on these appointments yesterday.
A new police commissioner is expected to appointed in August.
The newly-formed campaign is urging the same process be followed that is used in the appointment of the Public Protector.
The ISS' Gareth Newham says poor leadership at the top impacts directly on the performance of the entire policing sector.
"They must understand policing. I know it seems that we shouldn't really have to say that, but certainly our president doesn't think that is an important criteria. He has appointed two permanent appointees to the national commissioner's post who had no operational experience in policing," says Newham.
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Corruption Watch's David Lewis says they want to work closely with civil society to ensure people are involved in selecting the next commissioner.
"If you look at the Trillion scandal and the Free State dairy scandal, there should be at least six or seven people fitting themselves out for orange overalls there. There is absolutely no doubt about that. Several of them are ministers. Some of them are business people from a well-known family. Others are, frankly, business people from what are generally considered to be very respectable international institutions," says Lewis.
"The pressing need for more effective law enforcement is something we've got to confront."