Plan for Hawks to get own funding
THE Hawks will soon be funded directly from the Treasury, in a move aimed at increasing its independence, Police Minister Nathi Nhleko said.
During his police budget speech to parliament yesterday, the minister said the Hawks would receive more resources in this financial year to fund the new specialised narcotics and firearms units.
The Hawks will receive R1.431-billion of the police’s R80.8billion budget for this year.
He said the Hawks would receive funding from the Treasury within two years.
The unit currently falls under the same budget vote as the police.
“This should satisfy compliance with the ruling of the Constitutional Court in entrenching the independence of the unit,” Nhleko said. Police portfolio committee chairman Francois Beukman said the unit’s independence had been the subject of many court cases and a Constitutional Court ruling.
In November 2014, the Constitutional Court ruled that current legislation did not effectively insulate the unit from executive interference.
Fransman said the committee would recommend that the department commence discussions with the Treasury to make the Hawks a separate budget vote.
Nhleko said funds would also be used in this financial year to implement the findings of the Farlam commission on the Marikana shootings.
He said money would also be made available to deal with “the ever-increasing attacks on and murder of police officers”.