'Blame Selebi for rot in SAPS'

Convicted former police boss Jackie Selebi "is solely responsible for the mess" in which the country's police force finds itself, Institute for Security Studies expert Johan Burger said yesterday.

"The country's police force is in a shambles. You have a former commissioner who is serving time in jail for dealing in the worst crime and another who is suspended and is not likely to return,'' said Burger.

"What does that tell you? A judicial commission of inquiry must be established to investigate managerial and structural problems within the police force if the country wants to reduce crime levels."

Speaking at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, Burger explained why Selebi was responsible for the "shenanigans" in the police force.

"The disbandment of task teams like the Scorpions or any other specialised unit that focused on specific crimes, like serious and violent crimes, drugs and others, [took place] under Selebi's tenure as police boss and it is no wonder he is now serving 15 years in jail. It's clear why these units were disbanded. Selebi clearly never understood the role that these units played in organised crimes," he said.

"I am worried that a lack of intelligence is crippling the force because police react after a crime has been committed rather than being able to prevent it from happening. What has happened in Cato Manor just shows the deep-rooted problems within the force, and to fix this mistake is always difficult compared to making them."

Durban's Cato Manor unit was shut down last week and detectives were transferred to other units following allegations they operated as a death squad by senselessly killing suspects.