Thieves posing as community workers are stripping the Compensation Commission for Occupational Diseases of funds meant for sick miners.
According to the health ministry, police have begun arresting suspects alleged to have filled out application forms on behalf of some miners, put in their own banking details, and walked away with the money.
The commission pays out about R6-million a month to miners suffering from lung diseases as a result of their work.
Compounding the problem, the office of the Auditor-General slammed the commission for having lax internal controls in its latest annual report tabled in parliament last week.
Health Minister Manto Tshabalala-Msimang told a Workers Day rally in George on Sunday that one Free State man representing a company called Consumer Centre had been arrested for raking in about R429 000 through fraudulent claims.
She said the health department was working with the police to conduct a forensic audit into claims paid to Consumer Centre.
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The Auditor-General accused the commission of keeping incomplete and inaccurate beneficiary files, and said duplicate payments were made to beneficiaries, sometimes for the same diagnoses.
sheenaa@incape.co.za
- This article was originally published on page 2 of The Star on May 03, 2005
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