ATC231122: Report of the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services on the National Prosecuting Authority Amendment Bill [B29 - 2023], dated 22 November 2023

Justice and Correctional Services

Report of the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services on the National Prosecuting Authority Amendment Bill [B29 - 2023], dated 22 November 2023

 

The Portfolio Committee on Justice and Correctional Services, having considered the National Prosecuting Authority Amendment Bill [B29- 2023] (National Assembly – section 75), referred to it and classified by the Joint Tagging Mechanism (JTM) as a section 75 Bill, reports the Bill with amendments [B29A-2023].

 

1. The National Prosecuting Authority Amendment Bill [B29 – 2023] amends the National Prosecuting Authority Act, 1998, to provide, among others, for the establishment of an Investigating Directorate against Corruption (IDAC) as a permanent entity within the NPA.
    
2. The Bill also aims to provide for the appointment of investigators in the Investigating Directorate against Corruption and investigators to ensure greater investigative capacity and capability.
    
3. The Bill was introduced on 5 September 2023 and referred to the Committee for consideration and report. The Committee was briefed on the Bill’s contents on 8 September 2023 and the Bill was advertised for comment on 19 September 2023, with a closing date of 13 October 2023.
    
4. The Committee is acutely aware of the criticism that the Bill does not go far enough: among others, it is criticised for not settling aspects related to the NPA’s independence, and by extension failing to guarantee the independence of the proposed IDAC. A further criticism relates to the failure to adequate address security of tenure.
    
5. The Committee considered the urgency of the proposed amendments, which are limited in scope and intended as an intermediate measure to improve the Investigating Directorate’s capacity, pending the recommendations of the National Anti-Corruption Advisory Council.
    
6. The Committee will address the issues raised in connection with the Bill and the need for legislation that comprehensively addresses aspects relating to the NPA’s independence in its Legacy Report for the attention of the Seventh Parliament. In addition, considering the critical importance of the issues raised, the Committee urges the Minister to introduce such legislation before the end of January 2025.
    
7. Concerning the matter of the vetting of investigators, the Committee requests that the President intervene to ensure that this is prioritised so that the work of the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption is not delayed in any way.

 

Report for consideration