The National Education, Health and Allied Workers’ Union [NEHAWU] notes the briefing by the Minister of Health and the Special Investigating Unit [SIU] on the investigations by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) into medico-legal claims made against the Department of Health across the country.
The progress report follows the proclamation in 2022 by President Cyril Ramaphosa for the Special Investigating Unit to investigate the allegations of corruption, fraud, and maladministration related to medico-legal claims within the public health sector.
The progress report has made shocking revelations and laid bare the extent to which the much needed public funds were misused through acts of corruption and fraud. The report details how legal practitioners had abused the system due to sheer greed. This progress report details how the capacity of the state in provision of quality healthcare services to our people has been hollowed-out by greedy corrupt elements and exposed the rampant scourge of corruption in the health sector. Our union has always been on record in public about the high level of corruption, fraudulent acts and mismanagement in the state administration especially in public health even at the time of COVID-19 where resources were highly needed to save the lives of South African society, the working class and the poor, and this scary report vindicate us, as NEHAWU.
As NEHAWU, we find it despicable that public funds were hollowed-out in such a manner as detailed by the report. These monies could have been correctly directed towards ensuring that the deteriorating healthcare system is strengthen and provided with the necessary resources needed to address among other issues such as: implementation of the Human Resource Strategy for Health, implementation of the National Health Infrastructure Plan in order to respond to the changing population, epidemiology and clinical dynamics, inadequate medications and drugs, filling of all vacant posts, infrastructural challenges, inadequate equipment, health, safety and security, insourcing of all the outsourced services including implementation of the NHI and absorption of the Community Health Workers, to mention a few.
Our members and healthcare workers are working under difficult conditions with severe shortage of staff, shortage of equipment, dilapidated infrastructure, yet billions of rands have been looted through medico-legal claims. As NEHAWU, we reiterate that it is imperative for the Department of Health to ensure that there is an investment in the healthcare workers in order to address the major challenges confronting our healthcare system. We have lost many members and healthcare practitioners at the peak of COVID-19 period as we still continue to loose lives in hospitals due to insufficient resources for health necessities and quality services due to looting and corruption acts by those given responsibilities to manage these hospitals.
Healthcare workers play a critical role in achieving a well-functioning healthcare system that is able to effectively provide quality healthcare services. This would contribute in improving the healthcare system and work towards strengthening the health system to ensure that it provides access to quality health services for all in line with the principles of universal health coverage.
We call on the government and relevant law enforcement authorities to implement measures which will include amongst others; criminal prosecution, litigation and recouping monies including protecting whistle blowers that are currently being killed yet culprits and real thieves are walking free. In this regard, we call for consequence management to all those affected failing which the union will take upon itself to ensure corrupt free environment prevails where it organises especially in the health sector as its members are a direct victims of the consequences of corruption and looting in the sector.
Lastly, the union call upon all relevant stakeholders/organisations and people in the health sector to join hands with us as we are establishing the left popular front which ensures that communities are taking full responsibility for assets of national importance such as hospitals whose existence is to care and save lives of our people through organs of people’s power – people’s health.
Any country that does not value its health deserves no future and health is an investment not a useless expenditure, this is a call NEHAWU is making to South African society.
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Issued by NEHAWU Secretariat.
Zola Saphetha (General Secretary) at 082 558 5968; December Mavuso (Deputy General Secretary) at 082 558 5969; Lwazi Nkolonzi (NEHAWU National Spokesperson) at 081 558 2335 or email: lwazin@nehawu.org.za