Swift response and suspension of officials implicated in the Digital Vibes scandal welcomed

30 September 2021

The FF Plus welcomes the announcement that seven officials in the service of the Department of Health, who have been implicated in the Digital Vibes scandal by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) report, will be suspended this afternoon.

Dr Joe Phaahla, Minister of Health, also announced this morning that disciplinary action will be taken against the officials in question.

The evidence collected by the SIU is damning and must be used in the disciplinary process as well.

The FF Plus wants to see that the officials are also criminally prosecuted at once. The guilty individuals must not only have disciplinary steps – which are usually accompanied by golden handshakes and a resignation – taken against them.

The Minister's undertaking to ensure that nothing relating to the matter will be swept under the rug is welcomed.

The FF Plus will keep the Minister to his word.

The Department's denial that the Digital Vibes saga had a negative impact on its functioning and its ability to handle the Covid-19 pandemic is untruthful.

The truth of the matter is that the Department did not have enough funds to launch proper awareness campaigns about the vaccinations, which greatly contributed to the fact that the information provided to the public was – and still is – insufficient, vague and confusing.

Justice must now be allowed to run its course and the individuals implicated in the SIU report must all get their day in court, as well as the punishment that they deserve.

Issued by Philip van Staden, FF Plus MP and chief spokesperson: Health, 30 September 2021