SIU Issues Lawyers Who Submitted Fraudulent Department of Health Claims 14-Day Deadline To Withdraw

• The Special Investigating Unit has issued a warning to lawyers who submitted claims to the Department of Health
• The SIU said it saved the department over R3 billion and revealed that attorneys in different provinces submitted claims worth billions
• The attorneys have been given 14 days to retract any fraudulent claim or face severe legal consequences

Tebogo Mokwena, a dedicated Briefly News current affairs journalist, contributed coverage of international and local social issues like health, corruption, education, unemployment, service delivery protests and heritage in South Africa during his seven years at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News.

JOHANNESBURG — Attorneys in different parts of the country have submitted claims to the Department of Health to the total value of R87,1 billion, some of which are fraudulent. The Special Investigating Unit is targeting fraudulent submissions made by lawyers.

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SIU warns lawyers submitting fraudulent claims

@RSASIU tweeted that the SIU saved the state and various Departments of Health nationally from losing over R3.1 billion in fraudulent claims. 2500 medico-legal claims were made to the Eastern Cape's Department of Health to the value of R22.3 billion. 417 claims were made in the Free State worth R4.9 billion.

Attorneys in Gauteng submitted 2450 claims worth R24.4 billion to the Gauteng Department of Health. In KwaZulu-Natal, 2440 claims worth R29.1 billion were submitted. 519 claims valued at R6.4 billion were submitted to the Mpumalanga Department of Health. The SIU has given lawyers who submitted fraudulent claims 14 days to withdraw them or face legal action.

View the tweet here:

South Africans reeling

Netizens commenting on the thread were incensed, and the rampant corruption and fraud in the country hurt some.

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Apostle Goodman said:

"From legal practitioners to magistrates, judges, justices to CJs. If the legal foundation is dirty, the entire legal chain is."

Tlhapi said:

"The government has money, but it goes to the politically connected."

Mbally Chonco said:

"Come to Middelburg Hospital in Mpumalanga. There is a lot going on there."

TruthSeeker said:

"It's a crocodile-feeding frenzy. These claims have to be rigorously scrutinised, and there must be processes to manage the trust funds."

SIU uncovers over R600 million from students owing NSFAS

In a related article, Briefly News reported that the SIU recovered over R600 million in debt owed to the National Student Financial Aid Scheme.

During a briefing in Parliament, it was revealed that students who fraudulently received NSFAS benefits signed an acknowledgement of debt.

Source: Briefly News