SAPS fork out almost R1 billion for wrongful arrests

23 September 2016

A reply to a DA parliamentary question has revealed that the SAPS has paid out R854 million for wrongful arrests and detention since 2009.

There has also been a worrying upward trend in the amounts paid each year. Specifically, the total amount paid out increased by 400% between 2009/10 and 2015/16.

These payments for civil claims highlight the DA's diagnosis of the shoddy state of the SAPS. Specifically that officers are under-trained at a station level and that they either do not know, or do not adhere to, proper policing procedures and therefore break the law or violate the SAPS Code of Conduct too frequently. 

The proper training of SAPS officers, both basic and on-the-job training, is vitally important to the effective functioning of the entire criminal justice system within the human rights-oriented ethos of the Constitution and acts as an important component in rebuilding the public’s faith in the SAPS.

Yet it seems that the training SAPS recruits receive is lost along the way, due to poor management that is soft on enforcing accountability and command-and-control. There is also a failure to implement on-the-job and refresher training continuously.

The DA will request that the Acting National Police Commissioner present a plan to the Portfolio Committee on Police on how he will improve basic and refresher training, as well as strengthen accountability in the police service in order to ensure professional conduct by officers that will drastically reduce liability of the SAPS for civil claims payments due to wrongful arrests and detention.

Issued by Zakhele Mbhele, DA Shadow Minister of Police, 23 September 2016