Minister of Police, Mr Nathi Mthethwa,
MEC for Safety and Liaison, Mr Dan Plato,
Acting Chairperson of Parliamentary Portfolio on Police, Ms Annelize Van Wyk,
National Commissioner of Police, General Phiyega,
All SAPS Top Management,
All Institutions & Organisations represented here,
Dignitaries,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Today, as South Africans, we can indeed testify that, through the Nelson Mandela International Day, the Madiba Magic legacy still lives and leads this great Nation of ours. Today, we proudly congratulate our Minister of Home Affairs, Ms Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, for just having won yesterday, a tightly contested vote to become the new Head of the African Union, the first ever woman to hold such a position.
And, just less than a month ago, His Excellency, President Jacob Zuma, appointed another woman as the National Commissioner of Police, General Phiyega, a first-ever in South Africa, to head the Department of Police, one of the critical front-line and big-budgeted National Departments to maintain and sustain South Africa’s entire safety and stability.
Both Ms Dlamini Zuma and General Phiyega, come into the new respective portfolios, at the time of great instability in some parts of the African continent (Mali, DRC, Sudan, to name the few) for Dlamini Zuma, and battered image of our South African Police Service for Phiyega, due to alleged rife corruption.
I am particularly mentioning these historic appointments of these two remarkable women, because today we are assembled to congratulate an achievement that is, notwithstanding, yet associated with issues of crime, instability and social ills.
For, we are here to pride ourselves as a Nation, for building a tool that will be instrumental in resolving heinous but yet difficult-to-solve crimes and their cases. Undoubtedly, this SAPS Forensic Science Laboratory will play a very important role in our local criminal justice system, including those crimes relating to international courts and tribunals, cases instigated by international bodies, such as the African Union.
So, as we continue to be inspired by our great icon’s magic, Madiba, who is turning 94 years tomorrow, let me, on behalf of the Minister of Police, the National Commissioner of Police, and the entire South African Police Service family, thank you all for taking your time, and come celebrate with us, as we open our brand new SAPS Forensic Science Laboratory.
To be honest, I have not as yet seen the building of such magnitude, and such advanced technology as show-cased during the virtual tour we took earlier on. I can only agree with the Minister of Police, to say, we all must see this ourselves, especially those of us Ministers and Deputy Ministers who are deployed and tasked with monitoring of the state of our Laboratories within the Criminal Justice System.
With such advanced technologies deployed in this building, as the JCPS Cluster Ministers and Deputy Ministers, we can only expect quality outputs that will equally match this state-of-the-art structure. Yes, we can be pleased and proud that our technology and our science will have social reprieve against hardened rapists, murderers and other violent criminals.
But, most importantly, we plead with you, Major General Shezi, that scientists employed in this Laboratory, must make sure that they apply this advanced technology with the highest standards.
Together, we must all strive to apply these technologies with the highest purposes of solving and ultimately defeating gross crimes, with credibility. As SAPS Leadership, we do not want this pride of ours to be associated with grave miscarriages of justice by incriminating innocent people.
Just as much, that as SAPS Leadership, we also want closer working relationship between the Department of Police Forensic Science Laboratory and the Department of Health Forensic Chemistry Laboratories, so as to minimize confusion on their respective mandates and allegations of backlogs.
That is why the SAPS has now established a platform to exchange best practices between the two Departments, to ensure the effectiveness and common purpose in the fight against crime.
As we celebrate Mandela Day tomorrow, let those of you who are scientists, devote some 67 minutes in this Laboratory, and share your expertise for free. By doing so, you will be making a difference in someone’s life, either by eliminating an innocent person as a suspect, or to prove and provide incriminating evidence beyond doubt, against a hardened criminal.
The SAPS Leadership would like to say a particular thank you to the Management of the Division: Forensic Services and its personnel, for organising this event successfully. I am sure this success will also translate into the Laboratory’s successful investigative and evidential value in solving violent, high profile crimes, as well as tackling other common type of transgression of the law, which makes up of high volume crime.
In conclusion, we would like to thank you all again for gracing our occasion today. We invite you to continue enjoying the exhibitions, where you will be afforded the opportunity to engage one-on-one with the experts in the environment, as well as some peers from other institutions/organisations represented here today.
I thank you all. Siyabulela.
Vote of thanks remarks by the Deputy Minister of Police, MS MM Sotyu (MP) on the official opening of the SAPS Forensic Science Laboratoty(FSL)
