Long-standing tension between the police and the Scorpions on jurisdiction, among other issues, could have been resolved a long time ago.

A ministerial committee was designed to handle these problems. However, government has yet to make use of this provision in the National Prosecuting Authority Act.

Instead, President Thabo Mbeki is talking about absorbing the Directorate of Special Operations, the Scorpions, into the police force.

This is because of continued disagreements over jurisdiction problems, and allegations by senior police officials that the Scorpions "cherry pick" the best cases to ensure a high conviction rate.

Experts believe, though, that the way the two organisations function makes it impossible for them to merge, and that it would undermine government's fight against crime.

A recent study showed that the Scorpions were by far the most identifiable crime unit and inspired confidence, particularly in business circles.

This suggests the unit has achieved at least two of its three mandates, outlined by Mbeki at its formation to be feared by criminals and to be loved by the people. The third, to be respected by its peers, is as yet unachieved.

In December 2000, amendments to the National Prosecuting Authorities Act made provision for a ministerial co-ordinating committee to provide policy guidelines on the functioning of the Scorpions. The amendments were drafted because legislators foresaw jurisdictional problems.

The committee also had the power to decide which cases were allocated to the directorate.

However, according to the Institute for Security Studies, the committee has never met. The justice ministry believes the ministerial cluster consisting of the ministries of justice and safety and security, the national prosecuting authority and the police is sufficiently equipped to handle "operational issues".

Anton du Plessis, head of the crime and justice division at the institute, says the Scorpions are modelled on the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).

"The concept of the Scorpions is still a very new one in SA, combining intelligence, investigation and prosecution under one roof. And with novel ideas there are always teething problems," he says.

Unlike the FBI, however, the Scorpions are not the only organisation in SA with federal jurisdiction this power has also been given to the police. And here begins the problem.

The Scorpions' mandate is to probe organised crime, complex financial crimes, money laundering, corruption and racketeering, creating an overlap with the police's organised crime unit.

A solution could be for the Scorpions to step in where the disbanded police anticorruption unit left off, says Du Plessis.

"Amendments to the National Prosecuting Authority Act were designed to resolve this very issue," says Du Plessis. "Cabinet members from the respective sectors, such as justice and safety and security, would be perfectly equipped to resolve disputes, but it has never actually sat."

He says the committee would have provided a neutral body to rule on such disputes.

Democratic Alliance MP Tertius Delport, who assisted in drawing up the amendments, says he is surprised it has not been implemented. "The committee was created to solve jurisdictional issues and to remove any uncertainties regarding the unit," he says.

The Scorpions require co-operation with other organisations to achieve its goal, yet it appears that its chief, Bulelani Ngcuka, has become increasingly isolated, making it hard for him to attract this kind of co-operation.

The unit's 90% prosecution rate left other crime-busters feeling threatened, and investigations into the activities of powerful businessmen and government officials did not win him political support.

Ngcuka began his career as public prosecutions directorate chief, by launching corruption probes into senior police officials. It did not endear him to Police Commissioner Jackie Selebi.

A study last year by Technikon SA researcher Jean Redpath found that most police detectives were earning low salaries and had "unmanageable caseloads of more than 50 crimes".

"The police do not have a problem with the unit because they see them as colleagues but there is a perception that they pick and choose cases that will succeed because they are under pressure to produce results and justify the money spent on the unit," says a senior police official.

A merger between the two might not solve tensions as the Scorpions have been given the legislative power to employ prosecutors, while the police cannot.

Members of the specialised unit earn higher salaries than police officers and this is almost guaranteed to cause further tension if there is a merger.

The justice ministry says tensions between it and the safety and security ministry is a thing of the past.

"We do agree that in the past we did have instances where there was tension," says justice ministry spokesman Paul Setsetse. "There was tension over the allocation of cases and power loss, but we believe the tension has been resolved as the Scorpions have gained momentum and co-operation is improving."

With acknowledgements to Chantelle Benjamin and Business Day.