WATCH | DNA oversight board slammed for ‘disrespect’ after parliament meeting

The oversight board looking into the backlog in DNA results was slammed by parliament's police portfolio committee chairperson Tina Joemat-Pettersson after an apparent snub at a meeting this week.

The National Forensic Oversight and Ethics Board has been tasked with clearing the huge backlog in the National Forensic Science Laboratories (NFSL) and finding a solution that will see forensic evidence produced before criminal trials. 

The board was meant to appear on Wednesday and chairperson advocate Lindi Nkosi-Thomas was due to brief the committee on the capacity of the laboratories as part of deliberations on the Criminal Law (Forensic Procedures) Amendment Bill, but she failed to show up, saying the board was not given enough notice. 

The meeting was rescheduled to Friday and deputy chairperson Raymond Sono took the committee through the presentation. Sono concluded the presentation by stating “the capacity of the laboratories are in a positive state to be able to deal with the implementation of the DNA bill amendments”.

However, after the meeting Joemat-Pettersson lambasted the board for what she said was “problematic and disrespectful” conduct.

“It has not been a pleasant experience interacting with the DNA board. They have been reluctant to co-operate and send me presentations and this is a bill which affects the DNA board in particular.

“They should have been ahead of the process and not be dragged to this committee. They knew we were dealing with this legislation. The board cannot treat the committee in this fashion — it is disrespectful and undermines the work of the committee and the constitutional responsibility and powers of the committee.

“I will write to the [DNA board] chairperson and the minister of police. I have reached the end of my tether. We almost had to postpone our meeting due to their lack of planning and preparation. This is an important piece of legislation and we can’t get it wrong. We only have only one opportunity to get it right,” she said.

In March 2021, the committee appointed Nkosi-Thomas as chairperson of the board to help find solutions to the dysfunctional state of the NFSL.

The board was tasked with addressing the backlog of DNA samples which police minister Bheki Cele blamed on budget constraints and ineffective contract management.

According to the board's presentation, they have reduced the backlog of 210,864 in June 2021 to 72,306 six months later — a reduction of 65%. 

However, the office of the public protector confirmed in February that it is investigating the handling of the backlog.

In January, President Cyril Ramaphosa signed into law amendments to the Criminal Law (Forensic Procedures) Act making it mandatory for the police to take DNA samples from offenders guilty of schedule 8 offences — rape, murder, human trafficking, robbery and culpable homicide.

The new legislation specifies the type of samples that can be taken and by whom, and allows for sharing forensic profiles with foreign law enforcement agencies.

It was hailed as a powerful tool for solving and preventing crime, especially sexual offences. The aim is to create a national database that could potentially link convicted offenders to unsolved crimes.

The backlog in processing DNA samples has been a major concern for civil society groups.

TimesLIVE

Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times. Just R20 for the first month.