SIU saves health departments R3bn in medico-legal claims, but Hawks yet to act

Special Investigating Unit (SIU) head Andy Mothibi. (Photo: Shiraaz Mohamed)

By Michelle Banda

25 Aug 2024

The SIU has saved provincial health departments more than R3-billion in medical malpractice claims, but the Hawks say that so far they are only ‘investigating and sharing notes as and when we continue’.

The Hawks have confirmed they are not investigating medical malpractice legal claims, despite the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) saying it saved provincial health departments billions in recent years.

Godfrey Lebeya, the head of the Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation, better known as the Hawks, said once they identify criminal conduct in such instances, a case will be registered and the Hawks will become involved.

“We are working closely with the SIU and not competing. There is a specific mandate that the SIU has and some powers solely rest with them and when they identify criminal activities that is what will be heard by the NPA and Hawks. We are also investigating and sharing notes as and when we continue,” Lebeya told a press conference on Sunday, 25 August 2024.

hawks mothibi Special Investigating Unit head Andy Mothibi. (Photo: Shiraaz Mohamed)

On Saturday, Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi and SIU head Andy Mothibi briefed the media on the preliminary findings of an SIU investigation into medico-legal claims against provincial health departments.

Motsoaledi revealed that more than R100-billion in medico-legal claims had been made against provincial health departments, led by KwaZulu-Natal (R29-billion), Gauteng (R24-billion) and Eastern Cape (R22.3-billion). He said more than R30-billion in claims is under SIU investigation.

The SIU investigation uncovered more than R3 billion in fraudulent medico-legal claims, with the Eastern Cape and Gauteng having the most questionable medico-legal claims.

Unscrupulous

The SIU found that between 2012 and 2017, a single law firm based in Johannesburg, Nonxuba Attorneys, submitted 44 suspected fraudulent medico-legal claims to the tune of R497-million against the Eastern Cape health department.

The firm is led by Zuko Nonxuba, a lawyer from the Eastern Cape who it is alleged stole millions of rands from children with cerebral palsy under the pretence of helping their mothers claim medical negligence damages from the Eastern Cape health department.

It is alleged he used their cases – and sometimes even invented fictitious ones – to claim the money and left the families with nothing. The Western Cape health department has initiated criminal proceedings regarding claims he made in that province, and the Legal Practice Council has said it is investigating, although its records suggest he has not practised since 2022.

“There is evidence of collusion between attorneys, touts, nurses and doctors in both the public and private healthcare. In some instances nurses stole the medical records and illegally handed them over to attorneys,” Motsoaledi said.

“Unfortunately there was also collusion involving some officials in the Office of the State Attorney.”

According to the SIU, in Gauteng, investigations into 58 medico-legal claims worth R66-million have been finalised, while investigations into 611 claims worth R4.1-billion are ongoing.

The SIU uncovered 19 cases submitted on behalf of deceased children in Gauteng and one case which was submitted on behalf of a child with cerebral palsy who, investigators subsequently found, did not suffer from the condition.

Motsoaledi said: “Most of the claims were targeting cerebral palsy”.

Hawks still pursuing Deokaran case

During the Hawks’ briefing on Sunday, Lebeya provided an update on the crime-fighting unit’s investigation into corruption at the Tembisa Hospital and the assassination of whistle-blower Babita Deokaran, who lifted the lid on graft in Gauteng’s public healthcare sector.

Despite the convictions and sentencing of the triggermen in the Deokaran case, Lebeya confirmed that the investigation remained open.

“We continue to pursue the masterminds behind this heinous act,” he said, three years after Deokaran’s assassination.

A recent report by News24’s Jeff Wicks revealed that the SIU has significantly broadened its Tembisa Hospital graft probe, originally initiated by Deokaran, to include a staggering 5,500 transactions valued at up to R3-billion.

The intricate investigation has uncovered hundreds of proxy business entities and numerous bank accounts used to launder illicit funds.

However, the News24 report suggested that the investigation into the mastermind behind Deokaran’s murder had gone cold. DM

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Unscrupulous

Hawks still pursuing Deokaran case