Chair, Minister, we agree that it is disgraceful that over R20 billion has been lost to corruption in the health sector and the ACDP welcomes the Health Sector Anti-Corruption Forum launched on 1 October by the President. You indicated that the SIU and NPA are pursuing investigations, but a major problem, which you also referred to, is the collusion between persons suing government hospitals for malpractice, and certain state attorneys. You either settle the case that have no merit or deliberately lose the cases.
You referred to the Eastern Cape matter, but it appears that this practice is far more widespread - the pursuing of fraudulent medical legal claims. What steps are you able to take to pick this up earlier, given that, according to the SIU, it is almost, in what they are aware of, R100 million? Is it not possible to pick that up earlier, to prevent that? Thank you.