The Democratic Alliance (DA) will on Friday lay criminal charges against vitamin salesperson Matthias Rath, the party said on Thursday.
Mike Waters, the DA health spokesperson, said Rath had contravened the law by masquerading as a medical doctor.
”At 10am tomorrow [Friday] at the Cape Town central police station the DA will lay a criminal charge against Matthias Rath for contravening Section 36 of the Health Professions Act [Act 56 of 1974] by depicting himself as a registered medical doctor and creating the misleading impression that he is able to offer medical advice about treating HIV/Aids,” Waters said in statement.
However, Rath’s attorney Zolile Gajana on Thursday dismissed the DA’s move as a ”publicity stunt”.
”The DA is clearly doing this as a publicity stunt. Our client practised as a cardiologist in German and thereafter became a researcher. He is not practising as medical practitioner in this country nor does he hold himself out as doing so,” he said in a statement.
Early this month, the DA lodged a similar complaint with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPSCA), requesting it to act on the German national for contravening the law by masquerading as a medical doctor.
However, the HPSCA refused to act, saying it only dealt with registered health professionals — of which Rath is not. – Sapa