Discussion will include future of suspended commissioner

AMAJOR restructuring of the police is in the making – splitting recently merged divisions, removing crime intelligence from direct accountability to the national commissioner, and establishing a new management intervention structure to deal with problems at provincial and station levels.

This emerged yesterday before Parliament’s police committee, where the IFP and Freedom Front Plus questioned whether these proposals meant suspended national police commissioner General Riah Phiyega was out of a job – regardless of what a pending inquiry into her fitness for office may find.

However, ANC MPs rallied around the police top brass and Police Minister Nkosinathi Nhleko and his deputy, with ANC MP Leonard Ramatlakane pointing out that an acting police national commissioner had the same powers as a permanentlyappointed incumbent.

Nhleko told MPs there was no governance which relied on one individual. “The danger we face as government today is the question of personality cult,” he said, adding authority did not follow an individual.

And acting national police commissioner Lieutenant-General Khomotso Phahlane added the current structure was “too expensive”: the previously created divisions required a lieutenant-general in charge, two major-generals and more offices. The proposed structure was informed by the police’s needs, overcame current “dysfunctionalities” and was effective and efficient. “It was critical for us to split policing (into two divisions),” said Phahlane. “The proposal is informed by our need to improve on our efficiency and effectiveness.”

The proposals are effectively the third restructuring in five years from 2010 under then national police commissioner Bheki Cele and the changes introduced last year by Phiyega. This year’s proposals include:

Establish a new division – national management intervention – under a deputy national commissioner to deal with challenges and priority areas, with three regional commissioners who will each be responsible for three provinces. This division will include the police’s inspectorate.

Four other deputy national police commissioners for policing (including visible policing, operational response services and protection and security services), crime detection (crime intelligence will be moved here alongside detectives and forensics), human resources, asset and legal management (including supply change management, facilities, information technology and a centralised legal and policy division).

Presidential protection services, internal audit and the crime registrar remain directly accountable to the national police commissioner.

Phahlane said this was a “flat” structure, which would enable police to make an impact. However, there are no deadlines for implementing the restructuring. Labour and others still needed to be “engaged”.

In 2010 there were five deputy national commissioners: operational services, crime detection, physical resource management, human resource management and a chief operations officer. Last year the chief operations officer post was abolished and the number of deputy national police commissioners reduced to three by various mergers: policing, resource management and corporate services. Crime intelligence was moved to directly account to the national police commissioner, to whom communications, internal audit and presidential protection services directly reported.

Police committee chairman Francois Beukman said effective policing was key: “This structure deals with this very directly – back to basics. We will monitor it”.