Cape Town - Former National Prosecuting Authority head Vusi Pikoli is set to become the police ombudsman for the Western Cape, the Saturday Star reported.
The appointment of a provincial police ombudsman would be a first for the country.
Pikoli, who also headed the Khayelitsha Commission of Inquiry which looked into complaints related to allegations of police inefficiency, was reportedly recommended by Premier Helen Zille for the post.
Zille's choice was unanimously backed by the provincial legislature's standing committee on community safety, the newspaper reported.
Committee chairwoman Mireille Wenger said Pikoli would bring confidence to the office.
In a letter to the legislature's Speaker, Sharna Fernandez, Zille was quoted as saying: “It is my belief Pikoli is suitably qualified for this post based on his experience.”
The provincial legislature's Community Safety Act, promulgated in April last year, paved the way to create the police ombudsman post.
The ombudsman's duties would be to adjudicate public complaints about police inefficiency, or problems that arose from a breakdown in relations between the police and the community. - Sapa