The Democratic Alliance (DA) has urged President Kgalema Motlanthe to order an investigation into the medical parole of fraudster Schabir Shaik, the party’s correctional services spokesperson James Selfe said on Wednesday.
”The DA has written to President Kgalema Motlanthe requesting that he follow through on an undertaking given during a meeting yesterday that he will consider establishing a probe into the release on medical parole of Schabir Shaik,” Selfe said.
”We would welcome any such step from the presidency.”
Motlanthe said during a visit to the Johannesburg Stock Exchange on Tuesday that he would consider a request for a probe into the Shaik case, but had so far received none.
The DA said its letter called on the president to instruct Correctional Services Minister Ngconde Balfour to refer the matter to the Parole Review Board chaired by Judge Siraj Desai.
Shaik was granted medical parole and released from prison last week after serving 28 months of his 15-year prison term for corruption and fraud linked in part to the arms deal.
Desai said in an interview on the day of Shaik’s release that medical parole was reserved for terminally ill prisoners.
But he added that he was not familiar with the content of the medical report recommending Shaik be freed and could not comment on the case as it might end up before the board.
Shaik’s family claims he is gravely ill with drug-resistant hypertension, but opposition parties have cried foul, claiming the former financial adviser to African National Congress leader Jacob Zuma has been given preferential treatment for political reasons.
On Tuesday, the Health Professions Council of South Africa announced it was launching an investigation into the conduct of a cardiologist who attended to Shaik.
It is acting in response to a complaint lodged by the DA amid press reports that the doctor had discharged Shaik from hospital yet recommended in a report to authorities that he be granted medical parole.
”The letter demonstrated quite conclusively that Shaik was not suffering from a terminal illness, and was certainly not in the final phase of such an illness,” Selfe said.
”Indeed, for the first time we have concrete evidence that Mr Shaik’s parole was recommended on incorrect grounds.” — Sapa