New safari park staff to take lie-detector tests to combat rhino poaching

The Kruger National Park says it is closer to implementing polygraph testing on all officials and personnel dealing with endangered species such as rhino.

However, no date has been set for the implementation of the testing.

As early as 2016, SA National Parks (Sanparks) informed parliament that rangers at Kruger had to undergo compulsory lie detector tests as part of efforts to stamp out rhino poaching.

There has been no concrete implementation of compulsory testing since that presentation to parliament.

Rhino poaching continues to afflict Kruger.

Sanparks said during 2020, 247 rhino were poached for their horns in Sanparks, 245 in Kruger and two in Marakele National Park.

The question of polygraph testing was raised last week during the four-day oversight visit by the parliament portfolio committee on forestry, fisheries and environment in Kruger last week.

DA MP Dave Bryant said the answer he received was that polygraph testing was not as useful as initially thought, because testing could not be used as a way to decide on guilt.

Bryant said there was acknowledgment during the visit by officials that internal corruption was one of the greatest risks, but it was something they were looking at addressing as soon as possible.

In response to questions about the introduction of polygraph testing, Kruger National Park spokesperson Ike Phaahla said on Wednesday that tests were done on all senior management of the park in 2016.

“It was then discovered that proper consultation needs to be done, to officially record the tests as part of a contract between employer and employee, because the country has labour laws and employees have rights that should not be undermined,” Phaahla said.

He said a process was undertaken to regularise the taking of polygraph tests.

“It has just been concluded and Exco has given the greenlight for the voluntary/compulsory taking of polygraph tests.

“This means it will become one of the conditions of employment for those working for Sanparks,” Phaahla said

Phaahla said the taking of polygraph tests did not exclude executive management, senior management, middle management and those working in the field.

“Currently the labour unions are being kept informed on the development and as soon as everybody is on the same page, it will be implemented,” Phaahla said.

An anti-poaching activist, Jamie Joseph, who has been calling for the implementation of the polygraph testing, urged Sanparks to announce the date for the implementation of testing.

“From as far back as 2016, Sanparks has been telling the media that it is about to introduce mandatory polygraphs, and then nothing ever comes of it.

“Again in February, they said to parliament they are ready to implement it with union support, and now again months later they are coming up with new delays. If Sanparks was serious about polygraphs becoming mandatory they should put a date on it,” Joseph said. —

Proper consultation needs to be done, to officially record the tests