The Special Investigating Unit has instituted civil proceedings worth some R1.6 billion as part of the Health Sector Anti-Corruption Forum’s (HSACF) role in fighting corruption in the healthcare system.
The forum includes civil society, law enforcement agencies, regulators, government and the private sector with the corruption busting unit as its chair.
According to the unit, the R1.6 billion currently before the courts includes “approximately R500 million that is linked to an investigation in the affairs of the Office of the State Attorney on medical negligence claims and legal service claims”. This is related to legal practitioners who rendered services to the Gauteng and Eastern Cape health departments.
“One of the legal practitioners being pursued by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) is Advocate Hassan Ebrahim Kajee, who served as a lawyer for the Office of the State Attorney. Kajee was arrested early this month on various charges of fraud.
“[The] SIU investigation revealed that Adv. Kajee inflated invoices, invoiced for services not actually rendered and overcharged for alleged services rendered. The SIU has instituted civil action in the Special Tribunal against Adv. Kajee to recover approximately R27 million for damages suffered by the State,” the SIU said.
Other highlights for the HSACF include:
The Fusion Centre, which reported to the HSACF, made recoveries on 10 of 76 medical matters with a grand total of approximately R445 million.
The Forum has received a report of 51 matters in court, with 45 matters resulting in convictions.
Some 29 allegations of corruption that were referred to the HSACF have resulted in formal investigations
More than 100 officials have been referred for disciplinary action
Some 30 referrals have been made to the National Prosecuting Authority for further action
“Despite having only 10 meetings since its inception almost five years ago, the HSACF has made inroads in collaborating with international bodies such as United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC).
“The partnership…aims to implement corruption prevention initiatives in the health sector, which include strengthening whistleblowing mechanism and corruption risk assessments. The collaboration also includes a pilot project that will be implemented on strengthening the internal whistleblowing/reporting channels and National Department of Health where corruption risk assessments will be implemented around procurement.
“With just less than three years until the planned implementation of the National Health Insurance, the HSACF will ensure that there is minimal room for corruption in both the public and private health sectors and help ensure that South Africans have access to a functioning and stable healthcare system,” the SIU said.
Source: South African Government News Agency