A model for the prevention of corruption and corruption-related offences at Gauteng police stations by Ronnie Gonasagaran Dayananda Rajin submitted in accordance with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Literature and Philosophy in the School of Criminal Justice at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA SUPERVISOR: PROFESSOR H.F. SNYMAN May 2017 i Summary The research entailed an exploration of the reasons behind corruption and related offences in selected Gauteng police stations of the South African Police Service (SAPS). Corruption refers to the illegal and unlawful activities performed by police officials when they enrich themselves by taking money and other valuable property from offenders, victims and other people they come into contact with. The participants in this study were purposefully chosen and comprised of two groups. The first group included ex-police officials convicted and sentenced for committing corruption and related offences. The second group were active police officials suspected to have committed corruption and related crimes and some in this group were dismissed by disciplinary tribunals. The research was done at four of the police stations in Gauteng Province. There were 18 participants interviewed and nine were chosen from these police stations, with the remaining nine from two correctional facilities in Gauteng. The participants were asked an open-ended question which aimed at exploring convicted police officials’ reasons for having committed corruption. The interviews were recorded with the participants’ permission. The recorded data were transcribed verbatim and analysed. The five main themes that emerged are the high incidence of corruption involving all levels of police, multiple environmental factors which contribute to corruption, forms of corruption, dynamics resulting from corruption and anti-corruption mechanisms to prevent corruption. The themes were described using “in vivo” quotes from the transcribed data. To learn other trends about corruption, the nature and extent of corruption in the political, economic and the governmental sphere were discussed. In the summary of the research recommendations and conclusions were provided. A model has been identified which consists of preventative and reactive mechanisms, including selection, recruitment, the code of conduct, supportive leadership, supervision, mentoring and coaching, targeted inspections and auditing. Life style audits, disciplinary measures, dismissals and prosecution in these corruption case hearings also form part of the proposed model. ii List of Acronyms APP Annual Performance Plan ACS Anti-Corruption Strategy AU African Union BRICS Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa CJS Criminal Justice System DCS Department of Correctional Services DPCI Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation FLASH Firearm, Liquor and Second Hand goods ICD Independent Complaint Directorate IPID Independent Police Investigative Directorate IPCC Independent Police Complaints Commission MNEs Multi National Enterprises PAA Public Audit Act PEP Performance Enhancement Plan PFMA Public Finance Management Act 1of 1999 POCA Prevention and Combatting of Corrupt Activities Act 12 of 2004 PSC Public Service Commission NPA National Prosecuting Authority RSA Republic of South Africa SAPS South African Police Service SSA Sub-Saharan Africa SCF Singapore Police Force SCM Supply Chain Management SIF Service Integrity Framework SMEs Small Medium Enterprises iii tjo-tjo Sotho word for illegally benefitting from something UNCAC United Nations Convention against Corruption iv Acknowledgements I convey my heartfelt gratitude to the following people for their encouragement and support during the stressful situation I had during this study: Professor Rika Snyman, my promoter, for her understanding, guidance and for availing time to share her knowledge regarding research and policing with me, her understanding and insistence on thoroughness which greatly motivated me to complete this study with excellence. The Acting Provincial Commissioner Major General Gela, for granting permission to enter the research field in the SAPS, Gauteng. The participants, for co-operating and voluntarily sharing their experiences, and feelings during the interviews. The library staff at the University of South Africa, for their patience and friendly service. My daughters, Ronelle and Rochelle for their interest, patience and motivation throughout the study. Meena Meghraj for her assistance and support in so many ways, including the typing and setting throughout the study. Manisagaree Gounden for her motivation and guidance that contributed to the completion of my studies. Professor Jeanette Maritz for her advice in respect of the chosen themes and codes as the independent coder. Lieutenant Colonel C.L. Booysen for her assistance in gathering the statistics of corruption and corruption-related cases in Gauteng SAPS. v Dedication This thesis is dedicated to my beloved late wife, Colonel Jeanie Rajin. A true Lady in “Blue” (1989 to 2015) in every sense of the word, who had the humbleness of a lamb in her veins. The most beautiful smile during the most difficult of times and who supported me in my darkest days and nights in the South African Police Service (SAPS). Thank you for your never-ending love, support, encouragement, motivation and inspiration. Your keen pursuit of knowledge throughout our journey is immeasurable. You will never be forgotten. vi Declaration I declare that “A model for the prevention of corruption and corruption-related offences at Gauteng police stations” is my own work, both in conception and in execution, and that all sources that were consulted and quoted during this study, have been acknowledged by means of complete references. I further declare that this study has not been submitted before for any degree or examination at any other University. R.G.D.Rajin STUDENT NUMBER: 0396451-5 DATE: 2016-09-01 vii DECLARATION I, Maria Petronella Roodt, hereby declare that I have proofread and edited the D.Phil thesis titled “A model for the prevention of corruption and corruption-related offences at Gauteng police stations” by RGD Rajin. My qualifications are as follows: BA with major in English, BA Hons (English) and MA in English (Applied Linguistics) and an MA (Higher Education Studies). I have extensive experience in proofreading and editing and can be contacted at the following address: [email protected] . My telephone numbers are 051 507 3866/ 0822025167. MP Roodt 07 November 2016 viii TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER ONE 1. ORIENTATION TO THE STUDY 1.1 Introduction 1 1.2 Problem Statement 2-5 1.3 Significance of the Study 5-6 1.4. Clarification of Corruption 7-12 1.5 The Purpose Statement of the Study 12-14 1.6 The Objectives of the Study 13 1.7 Summary 14 CHAPTER TWO 2. NATURE AND EXTENT OF CORRUPTION IN SOUTH AFRICA 2.1 Introduction 15-16 2.2 Nature of Corruption in South Africa 16 2.2.1 Political and Governmental Sphere 16-19 2.2.1.1. The nature of corruption pre-1994 19-20 2.2.1.2. The nature of corruption post-1994 20-25 2.2.2 Economic Sphere 25-34 2.2.3 Societal Sphere 34-41 2.3 Rotten apples, rotten barrels and rotten orchards 41-44 2.4 Summary 44 CHAPTER THREE 3. THE LEGISLATIVE FRAMEWORK ON CORRUPTION WITHIN THE SAPS 3.1 Introduction 45 3.2. Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 46-47 3.3 The South African Police Service Act, 1995 47-49 3.4 Protected Disclosure Act, 2000 49-50 ix 3.5 Prevention and Combatting of Corrupt Activities Act, 2004 50-52 3.6 Independent Police Investigative Directorate Act, 2011 52-54 3.7 Public Finance Management Act, 1999 54-56 3.8 Public Audit Act, 2004 57-58 3.9 The South African Police Code of Conduct 58-60 3.10 SAPS Corruption and Fraud Prevention Strategy 60-64 3.11 Risk Management Strategy 64-66 3.12 International Anti-corruption Instruments 67 3.12.1 United Nations Convention against Corruption 67-69 3.12.2 African Union Convention on Preventing and Combatting Corruption 69-70 3.12.3 Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) 70-71 3.12.3.1 Brazil 71 3.12.3.2 Russia 71-72 3.12.3.3 India 72 3.12.3.4 China 73 3.12.3.5 South Africa 73-74 3.12.4 Interpol 74-75 3.13 Gaps that cause the Legislative Framework to be ineffective 75 3.13.1 Economic growth and development 76-77 3.13.2 The criminals in the community that corrupt police officials 77 3.13.3 The lengthy process in implementing laws, regulations and policy to curb corruption 78 3.13.4 Lack of dedicated investigative units and prosecutors and special courts. 78-81 3.14 Summary 81 CHAPTER FOUR 4. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY 4.1 Introduction 82 4.2. Research Design 82-84 4.3. Research Methodology 84 4.3.1 The population of the study 84-86 x 4.3.2 Organisational Structure of a Police Station 86-96 4.3.3 Selection of the participants 96 4.3.4. Sampling Criteria 96-99 4.3.5 Data Collection 99-102 4.3.6 Data Analysis 102-104 4.4 Measures to ensure Trustworthiness 104-105 4.4.1 Credibility 105-107 4.4.2 Dependability 107 4.4.3 Conformability 107 4.4.4 Transferability 108-109 4.5 Ethical Considerations 109 4.5.1 Ethical issues embedded in the Research Problem and the aim and objectives of the study 109-110 4.5.2 Ethical issues in Data Collection 110-111 4.5.3 Ethical issues in Data Analysis 111 4.5.4 Ethical issues in writing and disseminating the research 111-112 4.6 University of South Africa (UNISA) Code of Research Ethics 112-113 4.7 Challenges in conducting the study 113-115 4.8 Summary 116 xi CHAPTER FIVE 5. A DESCRIPTION OF THE FINDINGS FROM THE STUDY