Pretoria - The backlog of DNA tests crucial for the prosecution of criminal cases has doubled in the past two years in Gauteng, rising from 20 132 in 2019/20 to 46 595 in the 2020/21 financial year.
This is according to Gauteng MEC for Community Safety, Faith Mazibuko, who was responding to an oral question posed by the DA MPL, Michael Shackleton, in the legislature.
Mazibuko has been on record stating that there was a recovery plan by the laboratory to address the backlog.
The plan included working closely with the National Prosecuting Authority to prioritise DNA tests for urgent court cases.
Shackleton was, however, unimpressed with the type of work done to deal with the backlogs, saying the recovery plan was ineffective.
According to him, the fact that there was no dent made in the backlogs was proof that the plan was not working.
He feared that the DNA tests backlog would “result in delays in prosecutions, possibly leading to cases being struck off the roll due to no evidence produced in court.
“Justice has been delayed for thousands of victims of violent crimes, due to an increase of DNA tests backlog. The backlog has doubled in Gauteng compared with the previous financial year.”
Shackleton pointed out that “the SAPS’ failure to timeously process DNA tests is causing this backlog and creating so much more unnecessary pain for victims and the families of victims who wish for justice and to close a horrible chapter in their lives”.
He suggested that Mazibuko liaise with Police Minister Bheki Cele to review the laboratory recovery plan because “it has not yet yielded positive results.
Department spokesperson Pinkie Numa did not respond to questions seeking to establish the cause of the backlog and a workable plan to address it.
Pretoria News