Tembisa Hospital scandal a ‘crime against humanity’ - Advocate Ezra Letsoalo (Gauteng Health Portfolio Committee Chair)

CapeTalk and 702's Mandy Wiener chats to Advocate Ezra Letsoalo, Chairperson of the Gauteng Health Portfolio Committee.

Listen to their conversation in the audio clip below:

Following the release of a Special Investigating Unit (SIU) report into mass corruption at Tembisa Hospital, Letsoalo describes the scandal as a "crime against humanity". 

ALSO READ: Gauteng government to lay criminal charges over R2bn Tembisa Hospital fraud 

The report uncovered a criminal syndicate operating within the hospital, responsible for the looting of nearly R2 billion, a network that extended far beyond low-level staff, implicating senior managers and government structures.

Letsoalo admits there were serious blind spots in oversight, noting that while portfolio committees conduct regular site visits, they often face deliberate unclear, under-reporting, and lack the investigative powers to uncover entrenched fraud. 

"What the legislature as an institution might need is that we begin to recruit persons who are knowledgeable or have insights into running investigations so that they can also complement the work of the committee because oversight on its own doesn't presuppose that it carries those functionalities which are necessary, and we are finding that to be the case."

- Advocate Ezra Letsoalo, Chairperson - Gauteng Health Portfolio Committee

ALSO READ: R2bn extracted from Tembisa Hospital by syndicates exposes the scale of systemic corruption in SA

The scandal has reignited public anger over the death of whistleblower Babita Deokaran, who raised red flags about procurement irregularities at the hospital before she was assassinated in 2021.

Scroll up to listen to the full conversation.