Dear Editor
The Democratic Alliance (DA) strongly condemns the temporary transfer of a 29-year-old Brigadier — who has never worn a SAPS uniform, never undergone formal police training, and who is currently out on bail on serious corruption charges — as the Head of Visible Policing (Vispol) for the Moot District in Pretoria.
The DA demands the immediate reversal of this decision and will take steps, through the parliamentary accountability mechanism, to ensure full transparency of this shocking decision.
This decision is nothing short of outrageous. The 29-year-old Brigadier was among several senior CI members arrested just weeks ago on allegations of fraud, corruption, and abuse of SAPS’s secret service funds.
SAPS management has attempted to justify her redeployment as a “temporary transfer” under the Disciplinary Regulations, which allow for a member to be moved if their presence in their current post is untenable. However, this does not excuse the failure to take firm and appropriate action. The Disciplinary Regulations clearly empower the SAPS to suspend any member, on full pay, if their continued presence in any capacity risks interfering with ongoing investigations or undermining the credibility of the Service.
Appointing an individual who lacks both operational policing experience and formal training not only endangers ordinary officers on the ground who are now expected to take instruction from someone unfamiliar with the realities and risks of front-line policing but it also poses grave secondary risks to the internal integrity of the organisation itself. It is a further insult to hardworking and honest police officers who have earned their positions.
This temporary transfer raises serious questions about the internal vetting, accountability, and decision-making processes within the service and shows how political interference and a lack of accountability are crippling SAPS leadership and demoralising career police officers.
The DA therefore demands the following urgent actions:
- Immediate reversal of this temporary transfer by the National Commissioner.
- Suspension of the officer in question in line with Regulation 13 of the Disciplinary Regulations, pending the outcome of her criminal case.
- A full and honest explanation from SAPS as to why the legally available and proper step of suspension was deliberately disregarded in favour of an inadequate transfer.
South Africans deserve a professional, credible and accountable police service that places public safety ahead of political protection.
Regards
Ian Cameron MP
DA Spokesperson on Police