The arrest of 11 senior police officers connected to a R360-million tender are a sign that accountability is possible, and must now be made inevitable through reform of the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and police, says business organisation Business Leadership South Africa (BLSA) CEO Busisiwe Mavuso.

The NPA, which has been building a case for two years, has acted against powerful figures at the heart of police corruption.

The decisive strike last week by the NPA reflects the steady rebuilding after the damage State capture inflicted on it. Progress has been slow, but the arrests show that progress is becoming tangible.

These cases test whether anyone is above the law and restore public confidence, she says.

Testimony to the Madlanga Commission has revealed a Gauteng-based network linked to Vusimuzi Matlala, who cultivated alleged corrupt relationships with senior police and government officials.

The testimony undermined any sense that the police are willing or able to defend the rule of law in the country, she says.

This is significant for business because, when police are compromised, property rights become negotiable, contract enforcement becomes uncertain and investment decisions must factor in whether the rule of law will hold, Mavuso points out.

These arrests strike at the institutional rot that has been eating away at the country's capacity to enforce the law, she adds.

“If government fails at everything else, the one thing it cannot fail at is enforcing the rule of law, which is the primary and fundamental role of government. The police should be the last line of defence and must be incorruptible. When our senior police are embroiled in organised crime, we truly are in a criminal State.”

Swift and successful prosecution is essential so the public can see justice being done, but South Africa needs fundamental institutional reform.

The murder of witness Marius van der Merwe in December, three weeks after his testimony to the commission, underscores the dangers faced by those who are willing to testify against crime and corruption.

A former officer has been charged with that murder, but South Africa must do much better to protect those who step forward to testify against criminal activity, Mavuso says.

Further, the rebuilding of the NPA is a long process, and BLSA has been actively involved in supporting it, within clear guardrails that protect its independence, including by supporting a fund that facilitates the use of top-level private sector forensic skills to help build cases.

“Business cannot thrive without functioning institutions. We invest in the capacity of the NPA because we need those cases prosecuted. We support witness protection because we need to protect people willing to testify. The partnership model works because both sides understand what is at stake.”

Reform of the NPA needs to continue, with fundamental changes to entrench its independence. It needs financial and operational independence from the Department of Justice, with the National Director of Public Prosecutions empowered to make key staffing decisions and to manage an independent budget, she says.

The NPA needs to be appropriately resourced to build and prosecute cases.

Further, its internal Investigating Directorate Against Corruption has been key to taking on high-profile, complex corruption cases while its Asset Forfeiture Unit remains an effective mechanism to decisively separate criminals from the proceeds of crime, Mavuso adds.

While the NPA stands at the top of South Africa's criminal justice system in bringing criminals to book, it depends on a functioning and effective police force to investigate, build cases and undertake arrests.

The NPA depends particularly on the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) within the police service to build strong cases and gather evidence, she points out.

“The Madlanga Commission's final report, which is expected in August, will be critical for the reform agenda across the police service. A fundamental overhaul is needed in terms of the people who lead it and the institutional structure in which it operates,” Mavuso advises.

“We need to decisively break with the State capture era that enabled the brazen corruption and rank criminality that has deeply infiltrated the police.

“Highly capable and clean men and women within the police must be empowered in this overhaul to ensure professionalism and integrity become the hallmarks of every police officer.”

The Madlanga Commission report must be the catalyst for a fundamental overhaul. Business stands ready to support it and government must act decisively in implementing the reforms, she says.