Hunadi Mateme: RIGHT TO REPLY
Your article, “MEC ‘has blood on her hands'” (February 27 to March 5) has not done anything to assist the public in understanding the action of my department.
Your reporter claims that this mentally ill person set fire to himself and his home because his pension was suspended. We could equally speculate upon how many people have died over the years because they had no access to a pension, or about lives lost o wing to inadequate budgets to provide health services.
The Northern Province Department of Health and Welfare is cleaning up its administration. The different administrations of previous dispensations each had a pension system. Thousands of people were granted pensions without qualifying for them. Some peopl e once qualified, but no longer do. Another group does qualify, but their files are incomplete and attempts to update these have been unsatisfacto ry.
It was decided that this unauthorised expenditure is not justified. “Cleaning” the data file by file has failed for a range of reasons, including fraud, bribery, inadequate staff, etcetera.
The fact that everybody now falls under one national system, Socpen 5, made another option possible: an audit identified 94 506 “doubtful” records. About 2 500 could be clarified as valid, while the remaining 92 000 could not be validated without the ben eficiaries’ participation. These records were suspended to force the recipients to present themselves to clarify their records.
It is regrettable that Dr Elma de Vries and the unnamed doctor in Phalaborwa vented their opinions without studying the facts. In our opinion it is a “clear case of stupidity” to continue to squander millions of rands on people who have no business benef iting from public funds.
We are aware that certain doctors affiliated to Phalaborwa Hospital are trying desperately to mount their own public relations exercise to discredit our department for personal reasons.
We recently found “pensioners” who collect pensions in wheelchairs who also play football. Our experience is also that certain doctors have found individuals to be blind while they carry a driver’s licence.
We have gone to great pains to distribute information to staff and the public. This includes excellent co-operation from most media, notably the local radio services. Transitional local councils and members of the provincial legislature, the South Africa n National Civic Organisation and other community organisations have been given the appropriate information.
We know there are many suspended beneficiaries who still qualify, or qualify for a different pension from those they have received to date. We estimate that 30 000 to 40 000 suspended beneficiaries will be reinstated and receive arrears payments.
It is not necessary for all those people to go to hospitals for reassessment. Suspended individuals should report to the district pension office, where they will be told what to do.
The government is acutely aware of the poverty of many of its citizens. This does not mean that a statutory pension can just be awarded to every poor person with many mouths to feed. The statutory criteria are the absolute benchmark.
For those who have become dependent on illegal pensions, the department is striving to provide community projects for them to participate in. These poverty alleviation projects and community development projects are already up and running throughout the province.
De Vries is not the only doctor who chose to work with the poor. Her contribution is valued. We hope that she is equally “disgusted” with the way in which some of her colleagues and unscrupulous officials have defrauded the system and thus deprived other s who do qualify from participating in statutory social security.
The astute professional should have established the facts and tried to overcome the breakdown in communication. The fair and publicly aware reporter should have investigated opinion more widely.
We will continue doing what we believe is right, even when it is difficult. We invite our critics to engage with us constructively to expedite action which will improve the service in the long run, even if it creates temporary turbulence. – Dr Hunadi Mat eme, MEC for Health and Welfare in the Northern Province
nMukoni T Ratshitanga replies: That the honourable MEC described the article as speculative stuns me. Reference is made to the investigating officer and the deceased’s family, who confirmed that he killed himself because he did not receive his grant.
More stunning is that Mateme’s department suspended 92 000 pensioners’ grants as other options led to “fraud, bribery, inadequate staff, etcetera”. I wonder what she would say if the premier decided to suspend her salary as a result of this corruption, w ith the proviso that she would be repaid after an official investigation.