There is no evidence so far that a Nigerian doctor, who worked at the BJ Vorster Hospital, in the Eastern Cape, is a bogus doctor, says Health Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi. However, addressing a press conference in Pretoria on Sunday, Motsoaledi did not rule out that the doctor had a case to answer.

“If this man is a quack or bogus doctor of some sort, we do not have any scientific or legal evidence of that,” he said.

“No agency, government or non-governmental statutory [body] or otherwise, inside or outside the Republic of South Africa, has ever presented to us any evidence to that effect.

“Even the Hawks have never presented such evidence to us.”
He said the Hawks spokesman had gone “into over-gear” in releasing the information to the media.

“I do not wish to be misquoted as saying that (he) has no case to answer the Hawks. He definitely does have a case to answer, but it is not what I read in the newspapers,” said Motsoaledi.
Six allegedly bogus doctors from Nigeria and Zambia appeared in the Middelburg Magistrate’s Court, in Mpumulanga, last week.

Hawks spokesman McIntosh Polela, said the case against the five, who faced charges of corruption, fraud, indecent assault and impersonating doctors, was postponed until February 23, when they are expected to apply for bail.

On Tuesday, last week, the Sowetan reported that one of the group, who worked at the BJ Vorster hospital in Kareedouw in the Eastern Cape, had passed a board examination required by the Health Professionals Council of South Africa.

At the time, Polela said that according to the Hawks’ information, the man’s qualification was fake.