| (1) | A member of the NIOC or a PICC— |
| (a) | must carry out his or her functions, duties and responsibilities in a manner that is fair, objective, impartial, non-discriminatory and transparent; and |
| (b) | must at all times act in the best interest of the NIOC or PICC, as the case may be, and in such a way that the credibility and integrity of the NIOC or PICC, as the case may be, are not compromised. |
| (2) | If any person, on reasonable grounds, is of the opinion that a member of the NIOC may be guilty of— |
| (a) | breaching a provision of the Act or these Regulations; |
| (c) | a failure to perform his or her functions, duties or responsibilities in terms of the Act or these Regulations, |
such person may, in writing, report such breach, misconduct or failure to the Minister.
(3)
| (a) | Upon receipt of a report as contemplated in sub-regulation (2), the Minister must request the particular member of the NIOC to reply in writing and within 30 calendar days to the alleged breach, misconduct or failure. |
| (b) | Upon receipt of the response of the particular member of the NIOC or if no response is received within the 60-day period, the Minister must appoint an investigative committee consisting of at least two persons to investigate and make a finding on the alleged breach, misconduct or failure and to submit a report with recommendations in respect of an appropriate sanction or sanctions to the Minister: Provided that— |
| (i) | a person appointed as a member of an investigative committee may not be a member of the NIOC or a PICC; |
| (ii) | an investigation must be conducted in accordance with the provisions of the Promotion of Administrative Justice Act, 2000 (Act No. 3 of 2000); and |
| (iii) | an investigation must be finalised and the report submitted within 30 calendar days from the appointment of the investigative committee. |
| (4) | The Minister must inform the Minister or institution who, in accordance with section 4(1) of the Act designated the particular member of the NIOC, of the alleged breach, misconduct or failure and the appointment of an investigative committee. |
| (5) | Upon receipt of a report from an investigative committee, the Minister may— |
| (a) | issue a formal warning to such a member; |
| (b) | reprimand such a member; |
| (c) | suspend such member for a period specified by the Minister; or |
| (d) | subject to sub-regulation (6), request that such member be removed and replaced: |
Provided that the Minister must, in writing, inform the particular member, the NIOC and the Director-General of the findings of the investigative committee and the sanction.
(6)
| (a) | The Minister must submit the report of an investigative committee to the Minister or institution that, in accordance with section 4(1) of the Act, designated the particular member of the NIOC, and inform such Minister or institution of the sanction instituted against such member. |
| (b) | In an instance where the Minister requests that the particular member of the NIOC be removed and replaced, the relevant Minister or institution as contemplated in section 4(1) of the Act, must in writing inform the particular member of his or her removal and must, within 30 calendar days from such removal, inform the Minister of the details of the person who is to replace the removed member. |
| (7) | The provisions of sub-regulations (2) to (6) apply to members of a PICC and any reference to the Minister or the NIOC shall, respectively, be construed as a reference to the relevant Premier or PICC. |
