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Hugh Glenister has expressed his disappointment at the National Council of Provinces’ (NCOP) decision to pass the latest version of the ‘Hawks Bill’ (SAPS Amendment Bill), which will keep anti-corruption body, the Hawks within the national police service.

The Hawks bill is an amendment to the South African Police Service Act, which established the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, known as the Hawks. In terms of this legislation, the head of the Hawks is answerable to the Minister of Police.

“This result shows that government is not willing to enter into dialogue over this issue,” says Glenister, “It is very disheartening to see politically-inspired decisions being made instead of the right ones.”

Glenister has been embroiled in legal action with government since 2008, when he challenged the disbandment of the Scorpions. Although unsuccessful in preventing the anti-corruption unit’s dissolution, he was successful in his 2011 Constitutional Court challenge, which invalidated the legislation that established the Scorpions’ replacement, the Hawks.

The legislation was found unconstitutional in that it failed to provide the new unit with adequate independence from political influence and interference.

The Court imposed an 18 month deadline on government to amend the legislation, which falls on 18 September 2012.

The new bill was tabled before parliament earlier this year, and the Committee on Policing voted to keep the Hawks within the police, against the recommendations of many security and legal experts.

The amended bill was passed by the National Assembly in May and referred to the NCOP.

Having gained approval from the NCOP, only a signature from the President is needed before it is passed into law.

Glenister has sent a letter to the President requesting that he checks the legislation’s constitutionality with the Court before making a decision. In the event that the President does approve the bill in its current form, Glenister and his legal counsel will take government back to the Constitutional Court.

“It will be impossible for the Hawks to fulfil their mandate to combat corruption as long as they remain answerable to an organisation that in itself is so riddled with it,” he says.