ATC110412: Report on Budget Vote 23 of Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD) FOR 2011/12
Police
REPORT OF THE PORTFOLIO COMMITTEE ON POLICE ON BUDGET VOTE 23 OF THE INDEPENDENT COMPLAINTS DIRECTORATE (ICD) FOR 2011/12 dated 12 April 2011
The Portfolio Committee on Police examined the Budget Vote 23 of the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD) for the 2011/12 financial year, including projections of the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) for 2011/12 and 2012/13, as shown in the Estimates of National Expenditure (ENE). Also examined, was the ICD Strategic Plan for 2011 – 2016 and the 2011/12 Annual Performance Plan. The Committee reports as follows:
1. INTRODUCTION
The Portfolio Committee on Police received the following submissions on the budget of the ICD for 2011/12:
· Overview of the 2010/11 Budget and Strategic Plan of the ICD by the Research Unit of the Parliament of South Africa
· Briefing by the ICD on the 2011/12 budget and strategic priorities for 2011- 2016 on 15 March 2011.
2. OVERVIEW OF THE STRATEGIC PRIORITIES AND BUDGET OF THE INDEPENDENT COMPLAINTS DIRECTORATE FOR 2011/12
The aim of the Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD) is to ensure independent oversight over the South African Police Services (SAPS) and the municipal police services, to conduct independent and impartial investigations of identified criminal offences allegedly committed by members of SAPS and the municipal police services, and to make appropriate recommendations.
The Independent Police Investigative Directorate Bill has been passed by Parliament in 2011 and has implications for the functioning of the ICD (which will be renamed as the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID)). These include obligations to investigate additional priority areas (other than deaths in police custody and deaths as a result of police action) including:
· Discharge of an official firearm by a police officer
· Rape by a police officer, whether off or on duty
· Rape of any person in police custody
· Complaints of torture or assault against a police officer in the execution of his or her duties
· Corruption matters within the police
· Any other matters referred to the IPID by the Executive Director, the Minister, an MEC, or the Secretary for the Police Service.
2.1. Strategic Priorities for 2011
The ICD identified seven strategic priority areas for the period 2011-2016 which are to:
· conduct effective and impartial investigations;
· combat corruption and systematic corruption within the SAPS and the municipal police services;
· co-operate with Civilian Secretariat for the Police Services;
· develop and promote public awareness of the Directorate’s functions;
· develop policy, reporting frameworks and standard operating procedures to regulate investigations;
· ensure corporate governance; and
· ensure effective financial management.
2.2. Focus Areas
The ICD reported its focus areas as: compliance to legislative prescripts, rules, regulation and policies; monitoring and evaluation of performance; case-flow management system; investigators’ training, and implementation of the Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) Act and Regulations.
With regards to the Adjustment Estimate period for October 2011, the ICD has indicated that it has prioritised the appointment of nine Provincial Heads, the establishment of the Corporate Governance Unit and the strengthening of Executive support.
The Plans differentiate between current programmes and proposed programme changes to give effect to the new mandate after the promulgation of the IPID Act as set out below.
|
PROGRAMMES PRE-IPID ACT PROMULGATION |
STRATEGIC OBJECTIVE |
PROGRAMMES POST-IPID ACT PROMULGATION |
STRATEGIC OBJECTIVE |
|
Programme 1: Administration
Sub-programmes: 1.Corporate Governance (new) 2. Internal Audit 3. Financial Management 4. Corporate Management services (Administration) |
Management & support services.
Corporate Governance is a new sub-programme to focus on monitoring and evaluating performance, and reporting on the attainment of strategic objectives. |
Programme 1: Administration
Sub-programmes: 1.Corporate Governance 2. Internal Audit 3. Financial Management 4. Corporate Management services (Administration 5. Executive Support(new)
|
Management & support services
Executive Support will provide strategic support, media liaison services; establishment and maintenance of sectoral and intergovernmental relations |
|
Programme 2:Complaints Processing, Monitoring and Investigation
Sub-programmes: 1 Complaints Processing, Monitoring and Investigation 2. Legal Services |
· Receive register and process complaints · Investigate deaths in police custody or as a result of police action; · Investigate and/or monitor police criminality and misconduct; · Monitor DVA implementation |
Programme 2:Investigation and Information Management
Sub-programmes: 1: Information Management 2: Policy development, strategic planning and provincial coordination |
· Co-ordinate and facilitate investigative process · Develop investigative policy and strategic framework to guide and report on investigations |
|
Programme 3: Information Management and Research
Sub-programmes: 1. Information Management system 2. Research |
· Manage all information needs · Conduct proactive research and various oversight activities · Manage all communication and marketing of activities and products to stakeholders |
Programme 3: Legal Services
Manage and facilitate the provision of investigation advisory services and legal and litigation services |
· Manage department’s legal and contractual obligations · Co-ordinate civil and labour litigation proceedings with State Attorney’s office · Coordinate granting of policing powers to investigators · Provide legal advice and guidance to investigators |
Because of the envisaged change in Programme structure after promulgation of the Act, as well as changes in responsibilities and focus areas for the Directorate, the 2011/12 Plan provides for performance indicators and targets pre-implementation of the Act as well as post-implementation of the Act.
2.3. Challenges
The ICD indicated that it has faced problems in the past which will be addressed in the following manner:
· Strengthening of Finance
· Internal Audit. Money allocated to fill four posts in 2011
· Focusing on issues of corruption and maladministration
· Strengthening of the National and Provincial offices.
3. EXPENDITURE FOR 2010
3.1 Analysis of second quarter spending
In terms of the Revised Estimates for 2010, the Independent Complaints Directorate’s main appropriation budget of R129.3 million for the 2010/11 financial year was adjusted upwards by R2.1 million during the adjustments period, due to the higher-than-anticipated increases in personnel remuneration costs, including housing allowances. There were, however, no roll-overs, virements or shifts of funds during the adjustments period.
In terms of spending trends, the ICD spent R48.1 million or 37.2% of its main appropriation budget by the end of September 2010 (i.e. in the first six months of the financial year). However, the preliminary expenditure rate of the adjusted budget was only 36.6%, due to the additional allocations. Expenditure in the first six months of the 2010/11 financial year was also lower compared to the mid-year expenditure rate of 41.4% of the 2009/10 adjusted budget. This can be ascribed to the delay in the relocation of the national office, which only took place in September 2010 although it had been budgeted for since 2008/09. Another contributing factor was the Basic Accounting System (BAS) “being ‘off-line’ for long periods prior to and during the relocation, resulting in delays in the processing of invoices and claims on BAS throughout September. Expenditure is expected to increase since the relocation has been completed in October 2010”.
3.2. Analysis of third quarter spending for the period ending 31 December 2010
The ICD had spent R93.4 million or 71% by the end of the third quarter, which is lower than the projected 77.1%, but higher compared to the same period in 2009/10 (63.5%).
The spending pattern differs greatly in respect of programmes, as Administration spent 82.8% compared to the 53.3% spent by Information Management and Research. Only 66.1% was spent in the Complaints Processing, Monitoring and Investigation Programme of a projected 75%. Under-expenditure in the Programmes was attributed to a number of factors including the relocation to new offices, and late invoices from the Department of Public Works (DPW) and the State Information Technology Agency (SITA).
Only 58.8% was spent in respect of capital assets, which was far below the projected 90.2%. The low spending is ascribed to the delayed relocation of the national office, which delayed payment of claims on the transversal system.
In terms of spending on identified items, lease payments (129.8%) and audit costs (109%) increased significantly in the third quarter. However, cost-saving measures resulted in lower spending on catering (38.5%), inventory: stationery and printing (44.3%).
4. BUDGET ANALYSIS
It is important to note that the ICD Budget Vote does not cater for the envisaged changes that will occur as a result of the implementation of the IPID Act. The Directorate indicated that it will get financing for the new structure and responsibilities emanating from the Act during the October Adjustment period. The ICD indicated that it does have a costing document for implementation of the Act which has been developed closely with National Treasury, but which had, at the time of the briefing, not been approved by the Minister of Police.
In 2011/12, the ICD receives an increased budget of R151.6 million, which represents a R20.2 million nominal rand change; or a R13.3 million real rand change from the adjusted R131 435 million appropriated in 2010/11.
The budget reflects a nominal increase of 15.37% and a real increase of 10.09%.
|
Programme |
Budget |
NominalRandchange |
RealRandchange |
Nominal % change |
Real % change |
|||
|
R million |
2010/11 |
2011/12 |
2012/13 |
2013/14 |
2010/11-2011/12 |
2010/11-2011/12 |
||
|
Administration |
50.8 |
59.8 |
65.6 |
69.2 |
9.0 |
6.3 |
17.72 % |
12.32 % |
|
Complaints Processing, Monitoring and Investigations |
64.6 |
74.2 |
75.8 |
80.5 |
9.6 |
6.2 |
14.86 % |
9.60 % |
|
Information Management and Research |
16.0 |
17.6 |
19.6 |
20.7 |
1.6 |
0.8 |
10.00 % |
4.96 % |
|
TOTAL |
131.4 |
151.6 |
161.0 |
170.4 |
20.2 |
13.3 |
15.37 % |
10.09 % |
Programme allocations: Budget Vote 23 has only three programmes, namely: Programme 1: Administration; Programme 2: Complaints Processing, Monitoring and Investigation; and Programme 3: Information Management and Research. The biggest allocation (R74.2 million or 48.9%) goes to Programme 2, which is responsible for the ICD’s core business, namely investigating deaths in police custody or as a result of police action; and investigating criminal offences and serious misconduct complaints against SAPS and Metro Police members. Programme 2’s nominal rand value allocation is 14.86% higher and real rand value 9.6% higher than in 2010/11. Programme 1 gets an allocation of 39.4% of the budget; and the remaining 11.7% goes to Programme 3. The percentage allocation for Programme 3 has decreased from the previous Budget’s allocation of 14%.
Additional allocations for 2011/12 and the MTEF: Provision is made for additional allocations of R7.9 million in 2011/12, R9.1 million in 2012/13 and R10.1 million in 2013/14 in respect of salary adjustments, increased financial management capacity, opening satellite offices in Western Cape (George) and Mpumalanga (KwaMhlanga), and developing a monitoring and evaluation component to improve reporting on performance.
More specifically additional allocations have been made as follows for the 2011/12 financial year:
· Improved conditions of service (salary adjustments): R2.9 million (increasing to R3 million in 2012/13 and R3.1 million in 2013/14)
· Strengthening financial management: R3.564 million (R2.605 million in 2012/13 and R2.761 in 2013/14)
· Opening of new satellite offices: R1.436 million (increasing to R2.128 in 2012/13 and R2.771 in 2013/14)
The additional allocation for a monitoring and evaluation component will only be allocated in 2012/13 (R1.346 million) and 2013/14 (R1.468 million).
Economic classification: The allocation to Current Payments, which includes Compensation of Employees and Goods and Services, has increased by R19.5 million to R147.6 million. Compensation of Employees receives an increase of R10.8 million; while Goods and Services increased by R8.7 million to R61 million. All increases in the Current Payments allocations are higher when compared to the increases received in 2010/11.
In terms of payments for capital assets, it should be noted that there is no allocation in the ICD budget for ‘Buildings and other fixed structures’ which means that all buildings are leased. According to the ENE, the allocation of R3.95 million for capital assets in 2011/12, which includes only ‘Machinery and Equipment’, will decrease at an average annual rate of 44.2% between 2010/11 and 2013/14, as the ICD will not replace its capital assets over the MTEF.
Key line items under Goods and Services and the allocations for 2011/12 include the following:
· Computer services: R4.6 million for 2011/12 (Adjusted Appropriation for 2010/11 was R4.3 million).
· Consultants and professional services: R552 thousand for 2011/12 (Revised estimate for 2010/11 was R471 thousand)
· Fleet services: R2.613 million for 2011/12 (Revised estimate for 2010/11 was R2.373 million)
· Lease payments: R10.037 million for 2011/12 (Revised estimate for 2010/11 was R9.990 million)
· Travel and subsistence: R20.875 million (Revised estimate for 2010/11 was R14.754 million).
Training: Training expenditure increases only slightly in 2011/12 at R1.239 million (it was R1.167 million in 2010/11). Training expenditure as a percentage of compensation of employees decreases from 1.5% in 2010 to 1.4% in 2011.
Human Resources: The ICD had a total staff component of 292 funded posts (95 in Programme 1; 155 in Programme 2; and 42 in Programme 3) as at 30 September 2010. The number of funded posts will increase to 301 in 2011/12 (104 in Programme 1; 153 in Programme 2 and 44 in Programme 3) mainly to strengthen the financial management function. The budget provides for increases in staff primarily to the Administration programme (to increase audit capacity and other finance functions, as well as four staff members for the George satellite office). The actual number of vacant positions in the Department is currently twenty (20), and all the vacant posts are approved and funded. Only 95 of the 155 posts in Programme 2 are currently filled by Investigators.
The ratio of support staff to function line staff is approximately 1:3. In other words, 1 in every 3 staff members is administrative staff. National Treasury has raised concerns in this regard and identifies that a more suitable ratio would be 1:5 or more.
4.1. Programme 1: Administration
|
Programme |
Budget |
Nominal Increase / Decrease in 2011/12 |
Real Increase / Decrease in 2011/12 |
Nominal Percent change in 2011/12 |
Real Percent change in 2011/12 |
|
|
R million |
2010/11 |
2011/12 |
||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sub-programme 1: Management |
10 088.0 |
10 757.0 |
669.0 |
176.3 |
6.63 % |
1.75 % |
|
Sub-programme 2: Corporate Services |
32 624.0 |
40 379.0 |
7 755.0 |
5 905.6 |
23.77 % |
18.10 % |
|
Sub-programme 3: Office Accommodation |
8 125.0 |
8 633.0 |
508.0 |
112.6 |
6.25 % |
1.39 % |
|
TOTAL |
50 837.0 |
59 769.0 |
8 932.0 |
6 194.5 |
17.6 % |
12.19 % |
The objective of Programme: Administration is to provide overall accountability and strategic direction to the Directorate. Administration received 39.4% of the total budget of R151.6 million. Over the medium term, expenditure is projected to increase from R50.8 million to R69.2 million, at an average annual rate of 10.8%. Expenditure will focus further on increasing capacity in support services, particularly finance and internal auditing.
4.2 Programme 2: Complaints Processing, Monitoring and Investigation
|
Programme |
Budget |
Nominal Increase / Decrease in 2011/12 |
Real Increase / Decrease in 2011/12 |
Nominal Percent change in 2011/12 |
Real Percent change in 2011/12 |
|
|
R million |
2010/11 |
2011/12 |
||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sub-programme 1: Complaints Processing, Monitoring and Investigation |
62 744.0 |
72 247.0 |
9 503.0 |
6 194.0 |
15.15 % |
9.87 % |
|
Sub-programme 2: Legal Services |
1 857.0 |
1 998.0 |
141.0 |
49.5 |
7.59 % |
2.66 % |
|
TOTAL |
64 601.0 |
74 245.0 |
9 644.0 |
6 243.5 |
14.9 % |
9.66 % |
Programme 2 comprises two sub-programmes, namely Complaints Processing, Monitoring and Investigation, and Legal Services.
Complaints Processing, Monitoring and Investigation is responsible for the ICD’s core business, namely investigating deaths in police custody, or as a result of police action; and investigating criminal offences and serious misconduct complaints against SAPS and Metro Police members.
After promulgation of the IPID Act, all matters that relate to service delivery complaints of the SAPS will be transferred to the SAPS and, where appropriate, to the Civilian Secretariat for Police Service. The conducting of station audits and cell inspection in compliance with the Domestic Violence Act will be transferred to the Civilian Secretariat for Police Service. The new Programme 2 will be called Investigation and Information Management, and its purpose will be to co-ordinate and facilitate the investigative process through the development of investigative policy and strategic frameworks that will guide and report on investigations.
4.3 Programme 3: Information Management and Research
|
Programme |
Budget |
Nominal Increase / Decrease in 2011/12 |
Real Increase / Decrease in 2011/12 |
Nominal Percent change in 2011/12 |
Real Percent change in 2011/12 |
|
|
R million |
2010/11 |
2011/12 |
||||
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sub-programme 1: Research |
1 642.0 |
1 803.0 |
161.0 |
78.4 |
9.81 % |
4.78 % |
|
Sub-programme 2: Information Management System |
14 355.0 |
15 783.0 |
1 428.0 |
705.1 |
9.95 % |
4.91 % |
|
TOTAL |
15 997.0 |
17 586.0 |
1 589.0 |
783.5 |
9.9 % |
4.90 % |
The Information Management and Research Programme currently consists of two sub-programmes: Research and Information Management System. After promulgation of the Act, the entire programme will be subsumed under Programme 1: Administration and Programme 2: Investigation and Information Management. The research function will be moved to the Civilian Secretariat for the Police Service. The new Programme 3: Legal Services will be responsible for managing the provision of investigation advisory services and litigation advisory services.
5. COMMITTEE OBSERVATIONS AND ISSUES OF CONCERN
The Chairperson commended the ICD for tabling their Strategic Plan and Annual Performance Plan on the 9 March 2011. The Committee highlighted the following observations and issues of concern:
Strategic priorities
Members raised concerns that the strategic priorities and focus areas identified in the presentation and in the Plans do not clearly address the changes in the functioning of the ICD that will occur on implementation of the Act. The continued focus in terms of strategic priorities on capacitating of the Head Office, for example, seems to reflect a ‘business as usual’ approach, rather than a clear strategic rethinking on what the effect of the Act will be on the ICD. Neither the presentation nor the Plans, spell out a clear strategic redirection of the ICD.
Measurement of Outputs and Outcomes
Members identified some areas of concern with regard to the performance indicators and targets included in the two planning documents. These included:
- A key concern that many of the targets in the Plan measure outputs rather than outcomes. For example, with regard to the required output to ‘improve ethical behaviour and integrity amongst staff and prevent corruption and fraud in the department’ they measure the number of workshops that will be held during the course of the year (10 ethics and integrity workshops). Instead, the focus should thus be on measuring the outcome of those workshops, which would be, for example, to ensure that no instances of fraud and corruption occur in the Directorate. The focus should be shifted from measuring of outputs to measuring the impact of the interventions in key areas.
- Concerns at the high number of workshops as targets in the Plan, such as 10 workshops for ethics and risk management and 40 team-building sessions. Members were concerned that ICD staff would be spending too much of their time in workshops/team building.
- The concern that HIV/AIDS should not be dealt with as an event (there is an indicator for the number of HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns conducted) but as an ongoing process.
In response to the concern that there is a focus on outputs rather than outcomes, the Directorate stated that it had focused on outputs rather than outcomes based on the guidance given to them by National Treasury. The Committee agreed to discuss this issue further with National Treasury, but it was clear from a cursory reading of the National Treasury guidelines that the ICD was not prohibited from measuring outcomes.
In addition, a written response was received from the Directorate on this issue. In the response, it was stated that ‘it is therefore the humble submission that the department’s performance can indeed be measured by referring to the technical indicator descriptions included in the Annual Performance Plan’. The Directorate also noted that:
‘in cognisance of the commentary by Members of the Committee, the Department will consider to include an extra column on the tables in the main part of the document that sets out each programme’s strategic objective annual targets and indicators for the MTEF period in order to provide for the outcomes thereof as well’.
In response to concerns that the staff will be spending too much time in workshops and team building, the Directorate stated in its written response that there is a need for employees in the Department to be trained on various issues such as Ethics and Risk Management Policies and security risks, as well as compliance with the Minimum Information Security Standard (MISS) document. The ICD have ten (10) offices around the country, i.e. nine (9) Provincial Offices plus the National Office. The target is that there will be one (1) workshop per Office per annum, which brings the total number of workshops to ten (10) per annum in each of these areas. All workshops are done in-house, during working hours, without incurring any expenses on accommodation, travelling and food.
In response to concerns around the forty team-building sessions per annum, the Directorates stated that they are expecting each of the ten (10) offices to conduct at least one (1) team-building session per quarter, and these will add up to four (4) sessions per annum per office. The Directorate noted that these sessions are critically important particularly for Investigators, because of the stressful work that they are involved in.
In response to concerns raised around HIV/AIDS campaigns, the Directorate noted that the conducting of HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns is one of the many workplace programmes as per the policy, and it is a mandatory function of the Department’s Health and Wellness Sub-Directorate. One campaign will be held per office. The Department has a comprehensive HIV/AIDS policy, which contains guidelines on issues like recruitment and employment, workplace health and safety, voluntary counselling and testing, employee assistance programmes, termination of employment, responsibilities of the employer and the employees, etc.
Measurement of Backlogs
Members raised concern that there is no separate indicator in the Plan for the reduction of case backlogs. In addition, the Committee noted that the targets for investigations are low - between 55 % and 65 % – which means that the Directorate is in fact working toward the creation of backlogs rather than the reduction of backlogs. The Committee recommended that a separate indicator for reduction of case backlogs be included in the Annual Performance Plan.
The Department acknowledged that there were problems with case backlogs in some of the provinces and that the backlog strategy was not identified in the Plan.
The following written response was received from the ICD in response to this concern:
‘In the 2008/09 financial year, the ICD had a backlog of 4 060 cases that were carried over into the 2009/10 financial year. In 2009/10, the ICD received 6 377 complaints resulting in a total workload of 10 437 cases. A total of 7 946 cases were completed during that financial year. As such only 2 491 cases were carried over into 2010/11 – the majority of these cases are cases received during 2009/10.
Due to the targets set in our strategic plan, it is inevitable that the ICD will carry over cases into the new financial year. It is these cases that are catered for on page 12 of the ICD’s Strategic Plan 2011/16, as one of the seven strategic outcome oriented goals of the department for the next five years.
The strategy to reduce backlogs is implemented as follows:
· At the beginning of every financial year, provincial offices are required to do an audit of all incomplete cases in order to determine and verify the number of cases that will be carried over into the new financial year. National office reconciles these figures with those in the Case Management System and Monthly Reports;
· These cases that are carried over (backlog) are prioritized for completion by provincial offices within the first 6 months of the new financial year;
· Depending on number of cases carried over (backlogs), those provinces with a higher number of cases will be required to dedicate a team of investigators on a project basis to complete the cases. Those provinces with fewer cases will then deal with the cases in the normal way. On a monthly basis each province is required to submit a report on the status of the backlog cases to the Monitoring and Evaluation Committee;
· The Monitoring and Evaluation Committee monitors the performance of each office on a monthly basis and recommends intervention to the Executive Director where necessary.
· As part of strengthening the investigation component in all provinces, the ICD will be converting Case Monitors and Case Analysts to Investigators and Senior Investigators on completion of the training that they are currently undergoing. This will also be dependent on the financial support from National Treasury, to ensure that the conversion into the investigation component is realized. The aim is to commence with such conversion in the 2012/13 financial year. Currently, this core assists in dealing with those matters that do not require policing powers, for instance following up on feedback or outstanding reports, under the supervision of investigators.
Low targets set for priority focus areas
Members raised concerns that the targets set in some of the priority areas for the ICD, as defined by their amended mandate in terms of the Act, are too low. The target, for example, of investigation of deaths in police custody, or rape by a police officer should be 100 % and not 65 % as stated in the Plan. Members reiterated that a number of functions had been taken away from the ICD in the IPID Act precisely so that the ICD could focus on some core priority areas. In the opinion of Members, this concentration of focus should be reflected in the Plan.
The Directorate stated that the ICD is required by the IPID Act to report on new focus areas, and that they project an increase in the number of these cases received. If they increase their targets for these cases, then they may find that they will not be able to meet these targets. They thus made a decision to keep the targets low until they have assessed the actual workload that will arise from implementation of the Act. Once this assessment has been done, the Directorate stated that the targets may then either increase or decrease substantially.
In their written response the ICD stated that:
‘In cognizance of the commentary by Members of the Committee, the department will review the annual targets for the completion of investigations as stipulated on pages 13 and 14 of the Annual Performance Plan 2011/12, when we commence with the drafting and compilation of our Annual Performance Plan 2012/13 during September 2011.’
The 2011/12 budget in relation to the IPID Act
Members raised concerns that the minimal increases to the budget for 2011/12 and for the MTEF do not reflect the implementation of the IPID Act, and the fact that the changed focus of the ICD, as outlined in the IPID Bill, is not reflected in the budget allocated to the ICD. For example, the budget increases for Programme 1: Administration (to deal with the acknowledged need to improve financial and internal audit functions) is the focus of the 2011/12 budget. The presentation also highlights that nine additional posts will be created in 2011/12 in this Programme. In contrast, the number of posts in 2011/12 for Programme 2 (which is the core investigative function of the Directorate) is stated to decrease from 155 posts to 153 posts, and the increases to Programme 2 for 2011/12 are minimal.
Members also noted that the focus in implementation of the Act should not only be on more staff, but also on the implementation of systems and processes to ensure effective implementation of priority areas of focus. This does not necessarily require additional budget, and work could have been done on putting these systems in place before the Act was actually passed. Members also noted that, while the budget increases are relatively small, the Directorate does not seem concerned about this. The Directorate was urged to approach the Committee if they felt that their budget inhibited effective service delivery.
The Directorate stated that National Treasury sits on the Steering Committee for implementation of the Act. The Directorate can only ask for funding when the Act is promulgated, and they thus plan to do so in the October adjustment period. Budgeting for the IPID Bill has been done (in conjunction with the Department of Public Service and Administration and National Treasury) and has been submitted to the Minister of Police for approval. The Department of Public Service and Administration (DPSA’s) drafted Guidelines and wanted to know what steps would be taken by the Directorate to ensure that there were more staff working in the core investigative functions.
The Directorate noted this concern and subsequently provided the following written response: ‘The Provincial ratio of Administrative Staff against the Line Function Staff is 1: 5. This is in line with DPSA’s draft Organisational Development Guideline of 2009.
The National ratio is influenced by the fact that certain components are the competencies of National Office, and there is no discretion whether to establish them or not. Even then, the Department has been conservative in staffing those components. The following are examples of such components:
·The Internal Audit Unit has only 3 staff members to service the entire Department
·The Ethics & Risk Management Unit has only 1 staff member
·The Labour Relations Unit has only 2 staff members
·The Training Division has only 2 staff members
·The Employee Wellness Unit has only 2 staff members
·The Legal Services Directorate has only 2 staff members
·The Security Management Section has only 3 staff members
·The Library Services Unit has only 1 staff member
·Communication Unit has only 2 staff members
·Research Unit has only 3 staff members.
All these Support Units are generic and necessary in every Department.’
NB: The Committee noted that the information provided differs from the information given under Human Resources. Refer to page 6 of this report
Capacity building of investigators
Members raised concerns that the training allocation as a percentage of compensation of employees has actually decreased in 2011/12 in comparison to 2010/11. This is a particular concern in relation to the need to ensure that investigators are fully trained and capacitated to effectively implement their duties under the IPID Act.
The Directorate noted that in 2010 they focused on capacitating monitors and case analysts by sending them to an investigative training programme. This is a one-year, fully fledged diploma, and this project will end in October 2011. A three-day programme per year will also be delivered. In 2010 the focus was on pathology and forensics, and this will continue in 2011/12. A budget has been set aside for this programme. The Directorate is also developing an Investigation Manual which will be issued to all investigators. The Directorate stated that it was committed to ensuring that all investigators were ready to implement the Act on promulgation.
Retention of staff
Members raised the issue of retention of staff, which has been an ongoing challenge within the ICD.
In their written response, the Directorate stated that they have a Retention Policy which has just been reviewed recently and has just been tabled at the Departmental Bargaining Chamber for ratification. The implementation thereof is a continuous process. The staff members that are leaving the Department are largely entry level (level 4) employees in Programme 1: Administration. The Department is currently in the process of doing away with level 4 as an entry level.
Case Management System
Members raised questions around progress with the Case Management System and the projected travel costs that will be associated with this system in 2011/12.
In its written response the Directorate stated that, in 2008/09, the ICD started a process to replace its Case Management System, which no longer met the requirements in terms of reporting and integration with the latest technology. The ICD is nearing the completion of developing a New Case Management System for the registration, allocation and processing of cases. The system is a work-flow system which provides for the various stages of investigation to flow from one case worker to another until the investigation is completed. The system also provides for stringent supervision of investigations in that if certain processes are delayed, such delays are escalated to the relevant supervisors. The new system has a business intelligence tool that will assist the ICD with reporting more easily than the current system allows. Other functionality includes the ability to provide feedback to complainants via SMS and emails.
Since this is a new system that integrates the processing of complaints all over the country, there is a need to ensure that all the users are sufficiently trained. This training is vital in order to ensure that the system functions optimally and that it does not fail due to staff not having been trained. The training will be done at provincial level by the service provider (FlowCentric) and will be completed by the end of March 2011. The travel costs associated with this project arise as a result of the implementation and training that will be conducted in the roll out of the New Case Management System.
Use of consultants
Members raised questions about the use of consultants and why consultants seem to be used for some functions that ought to be done internally.
In written response the Directorate stated that consultants are utilised in the following situations:
· When the Department does not have the capacity, expertise or specialized skills to perform the required task; and/or
· When an external review is needed for quality purposes.
Currently the consultant fees represent 0.19% of the Department’s total budget. These are preliminary figures, as the financial year 2010/11 will be ending on the 31 March 2011.
6. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION REQUESTED
The following additional information was requested at the meeting from the ICD:
· Copy of the costed operational plan (Business Plan) for 2011/12
· Copy of the budget for implementation of the IPID Act, once this has been approved by the Minister of Police
· Clear indication of how the ICD will address case backlogs
· Written response to additional questions which were not responded to in the meeting.
Written responses to the issue of case backlogs and additional questions not responded to in the meeting were received on 25 March 2011.
7. RECOMMENDATIONS
The Committee recommends the following:
Measurement of Outcomes:
The Committee recommended in the meeting with the Directorate that the ICD review its Annual Performance Plan, specifically in terms of ensuring that the Plan effectively provides for monitoring of the performance of the ICD in terms of its ‘refocus’ emanating from the IPID Act. In addition, the Plan should be reviewed to ensure that the targets measure useful information in terms of performance - i.e. outcomes as well as outputs.
The Committee takes note of the response by the Directorate with regard to the issue of whether targets are correctly defined to measure outcomes rather than outputs. The Committee will approach National Treasury to get clarity on whether the Plan of the Directorate can measure outcomes as well as outputs. The Committee does not believe that targets that measure only outputs (such as the number of workshops held) are useful in the assessment of the performance of the Directorate during the year.
The Committee notes that the Directorate will ‘consider’ whether to add an extra column on the tables to provide the outcomes thereof, but does not believe that this accurately reflects the concern of the Committee.
The Committee will expect the 2012/13 Annual Performance Plan to accurately reflect the new strategic direction of the Directorate and to include additional targets that measure outputs, especially for Programme 1.
Backlogs in Investigations:
The Committee recommends that a target on reduction of case backlogs should be included in this Plan and future plans. In addition, while noting the responses of the Directorate, the Committee recommends that the targets for all priority investigations be increased (ideally to 100%) in future Plans.
Planning and Budgeting for implementation of the Independent Police Investigative Directorate Act:
The Directorate should provide the Committee with a copy of its costing document for implementation of the IPID Act when this costing document has been approved by the Minister. In addition, the Committee will expect the Directorate to appear before it in the Adjustments period in order to present on their submission to National Treasury with regard to the funding required to implement the IPID Act.
8. CONCLUSION
The Portfolio Committee on Police supports the budget allocation of the Independent Complaints Directorate for 2011/12 and the 2011 MTEF and recommends that Budget Vote 23 be adopted.
Report to be considered.
Documents
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