Sunday, October 31, 2010
SAPS-SITA EXPOSED
R1.3m a month paid to Mr and Mrs SAPS director and deputy director's child
A consultant employed by
the South African Police Service (SAPS), whose highest qualification was matric, was paid R1.3 million a month.
The consultant’s mother had been working as a director and her father as a deputy director at the SAPS, Chikunga said. Police national commissioner General Bheki Cele had on a previous occasion confirmed this.
Cele did not answer repeated calls made to him about the matter.
But, appearing before the committee a few months ago, he mentioned that the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) was investigating a married couple who had been employed by the SAPS, the wife being a director and the husband a deputy-director.
The couple owned a company that received tenders for services provided to the SAPS. The couple’s daughter, who was apparently still in school, did work for the SAPS through the company on behalf of the family.
Police spokesman Vish Naidoo said he could not confirm that the consultant mentioned in yesterday’s meeting and the daughter referred to by Cele was the same person.
Chikunga said the case was alarming and indicated the serious problems the SAPS faced. “If a matriculant earns R1.3m per month… there are serious problems.
“What special services are you going to get from a matriculant that you cannot get from someone in the SAPS? It’s concerning and shows the issues that are there and what’s going on in the department,” said Chikunga.
MPs accused the SAPS of handing over blank cheques to Sita without properly planning the use of the money. “They get allocated the money and then they say, ‘Oh, what do we need to do with it’,” said ANC MP Greg Schneemann.
Police commander Laytoa Tshabalala, the head of SAPS’s technology unit, agreed with Schneemann’s sentiment. He said he had addressed with the SAPS and Sita the “tell us how much you earn and we’ll help you spend it” tendencies.
MPs questioned the business relationship between the SAPS and Sita, which provides technological services.
ANC MP Annelise van Wyk said: “This is absolutely ridiculous. SAPS is Sita’s biggest client. There are serious concerns in the way SAPS determines priorities. I wonder whether this relationship is unhealthy.”
Tshabalala said the SAPS had had serious doubts about renewing its contract with Sita this year.
“The management of SAPS resisted giving the money to Sita. We were seriously toying with the idea to not go into business with them.”
Tshabalala, who only recently started working for the unit, said that on his arrival he was shocked at the state of the business practices.
“I was saying, it can’t be that Sita is the only (service provider). There were people who were working for Sita that came from SAPS. How is it that we allowed this mafia to run amok for so long?”
He said almost half of the consultants used by Sita were employed by the SAPS.
“It’s no point cleaning on one side and not the other. You must clean both sides,” he added. –
The consultant’s mother had been working as a director and her father as a deputy director at the SAPS, Chikunga said. Police national commissioner General Bheki Cele had on a previous occasion confirmed this.
Cele did not answer repeated calls made to him about the matter.
But, appearing before the committee a few months ago, he mentioned that the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) was investigating a married couple who had been employed by the SAPS, the wife being a director and the husband a deputy-director.
The couple owned a company that received tenders for services provided to the SAPS. The couple’s daughter, who was apparently still in school, did work for the SAPS through the company on behalf of the family.
Police spokesman Vish Naidoo said he could not confirm that the consultant mentioned in yesterday’s meeting and the daughter referred to by Cele was the same person.
Chikunga said the case was alarming and indicated the serious problems the SAPS faced. “If a matriculant earns R1.3m per month… there are serious problems.
“What special services are you going to get from a matriculant that you cannot get from someone in the SAPS? It’s concerning and shows the issues that are there and what’s going on in the department,” said Chikunga.
MPs accused the SAPS of handing over blank cheques to Sita without properly planning the use of the money. “They get allocated the money and then they say, ‘Oh, what do we need to do with it’,” said ANC MP Greg Schneemann.
Police commander Laytoa Tshabalala, the head of SAPS’s technology unit, agreed with Schneemann’s sentiment. He said he had addressed with the SAPS and Sita the “tell us how much you earn and we’ll help you spend it” tendencies.
MPs questioned the business relationship between the SAPS and Sita, which provides technological services.
ANC MP Annelise van Wyk said: “This is absolutely ridiculous. SAPS is Sita’s biggest client. There are serious concerns in the way SAPS determines priorities. I wonder whether this relationship is unhealthy.”
Tshabalala said the SAPS had had serious doubts about renewing its contract with Sita this year.
“The management of SAPS resisted giving the money to Sita. We were seriously toying with the idea to not go into business with them.”
Tshabalala, who only recently started working for the unit, said that on his arrival he was shocked at the state of the business practices.
“I was saying, it can’t be that Sita is the only (service provider). There were people who were working for Sita that came from SAPS. How is it that we allowed this mafia to run amok for so long?”
He said almost half of the consultants used by Sita were employed by the SAPS.
“It’s no point cleaning on one side and not the other. You must clean both sides,” he added. –
Pretoria News
