BusinessLive reports that the boss of the Directorate of Priority Crime Investigations (DPCI), Godfrey Lebeya, has painted a dire picture of its resourcing constraints, saying the unit was operating at less than 50% capacity.

The Hawks, as the DPCI is also known, investigates priority crimes for the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) to institute criminal prosecutions. Lebeya addressed parliament’s portfolio committee on justice and correctional services on Tuesday on a joint report by the Hawks, the NPA and the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) which provided updates into investigations into corruption at the state attorney and the master’s office and probes into Covid-19 corruption. When asked about the capacity constraints in law enforcement agencies, Lebeya told the committee that while the Hawks were getting 103 new personnel, it was still an interim measure. He said the Hawks were operating on about 47% capacity and needed more resources, even though the situation had improved. The unit was moving towards ensuring it operated with a staff complement of 100%, but this would take time he said. Breaking down the numbers, Lebeya said the DPCI had about 21,000 cases and fewer than 2,000 investigators, which was less than what they needed as one case docket did not mean only one investigator was working on it. Lebeya pointed out that the workload in general was more than what they could speedily complete.

• Read the full original of the report in the above regard by Claudi Mailovich at BusinessLive

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