| (1) | The Council must appoint one or more investigating officers as it deems fit to investigate any charge of improper conduct. |
| (a) | a complaint, charge or allegation of improper conduct has been brought against a registered person; or |
| (b) | the Council has reasonable grounds to suspect that a registered person is guilty of improper conduct, |
the Council must, as soon as is reasonably possible, refer the matter for investigation.
| (3) | At the request of the Council, the investigating officer must— |
| (a) | investigate the matter; and |
| (b) | obtain evidence to determine whether or not in its opinion the person concerned should be charged or not, and if so, recommend to the Council what the contents of the charge in question should be. |
| (4) | An investigating officer may not question the registered person concerned unless the investigating officer informs that registered person that he or she— |
| (a) | has the right to be assisted or represented by another registered person or a legal representative; and |
| (b) | is not obliged to make any statement and that any statement so made may be used in evidence against that registered person. |
| (5) | The investigating officer must, after the conclusion of the investigation, submit a report making its recommendations to the Council regarding any matter referred to it in terms of this section. |
