Outdated computers and software are hindering the work of South African Police Service (SAPS) detectives.
This is according to a report by labour body Solidarity, which exposes appalling working conditions at SAPS.
This comes after the Solidarity Research Institute conducted extensive research among hundreds of detectives nationwide.
Solidarity is of the opinion that the report offers an incriminating look at the state of decline at the SAPS.
According to Solidarity, detective services form an inseparable part of the legal process, and can make or break cases. It says detectives across the country are complaining about a work environment where the most basic support is lacking.
“Not only are detectivesoverwhelmed with cases, they are also thrown under the bus and are slated as lazy if they complain about the resource shortages they are experiencing to be empowered to do their work. Some detectives are saddled with 500 unfinished dockets but have no resources,” explains Renate Barnard, a network coordinator at Solidarity.
“It is shocking tothink that cases remain unfinished, not because people are not doing their job,but because it is made impossible for them to do their work.”
According to the report, respondents stated that up to four detectives have to share one 15-year-old computer, which does not even have internet access.
In respondents’ replies concerning equipment, the word “no” is probably the one most frequently used, says the labour body in the report.
“No internet. No e-mail. No telephones. No stationery. No printer. No ink. No vehicles. No support. No fingerprint powder. No brooms. No mops. No toilet paper. But most of all, no vehicles,” it says.
According to the report, many police stations do not have internet and there are not enough phones for detectives to do their work.
“Members feel devastated because they are unable to do their work. The systems usually are offline, which means criminals who have been arrested cannot be processed or linked to other cases. Case numbers often cannot be issued. Some members said they did not have enough tables.”
It adds that when some of the respondents started in the police service, the internet was still in its infancy and nobody could imagine the online crimes that are now flourishing, such as new forms of fraud and extortion.
“Apart from a lack of continued training, police members generally also have no resources to investigate such crimes.”
Some respondents complained about seriously obsolete computers and software. In some instances, the police are using unlicensed, and therefore illegal, software on their computers.
“When members voice their concern about this, it is ignored. Another respondent mentioned that exhibits processed using unlicensed software are not admissible in court.
“Responses such as: ‘We are four detectives sharing one computer. The computer is almost 15-years-old and cannot be used on the internet’ is a general comment made by respondents.”
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