During a parliament response, Acting Minister of Police Professor Firoz Cachalia admitted that the SAPS disciplinary system is broken and needed to be reviewed. This after he was questioned about the suspension of two police officers who were suspended without a salary for only one month after they were caught with a stolen patrol car filled with drugs and alcohol. “The SAPS should deal with discipline and sanction in a more consistent manner.
“The Minister has therefore identified the need to review the SAPS Disciplinary Regulations of 2016 with a view to addressing loopholes and weaknesses that create a public perception that SAPS is not serious about disciplinary matters, particularly issues of ethics and integrity,” he said. This was during via a parliamentary response to Nicholas Gotsell MP, DA NCOP Member on Security & Justice, in which he asked whether disciplinary was initiated for the two constables found in possession of the stolen patrol vehicle in Muizenberg in 2021, which had 14 packets of tik, mandrax tablets and alcohol in it and what the sanctions were and whether the criminal case was completed. In response, Cachalia said the outcome was that the officers were charged with misconduct.
In his response, he outlined the disciplinary actions taken: the first constable was dismissed for possession of narcotics, while the second constable was suspended without pay for one month on the same charge. For the second charge, which involved possession of an employer’s property, both constables received a one-month suspension without pay.
Read Full Article on Cape Argus
