EDITORIAL | Too ill to testify, well enough to shop?

Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga continues to raise the bar on ethical conduct and accountability, particularly among senior public officials.

This week was no different.

The chairperson of the commission probing allegations of corruption and abuse of power, wittingly or otherwise, effectively challenged elements of both the medical profession and government to look themselves in the mirror.

Madlanga’s frustration was prompted by the conduct of advocate Andrea Johnson, head of the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption (Idac).

Shortly before she was due to appear on Monday morning, Johnson was reportedly rushed to hospital with an undisclosed medical condition.

No one disputes that witnesses can fall ill. What irked Madlanga was the poor quality of the medical certificate Johnson’s medical team submitted to the commission that is probing serious allegations of corruption within the criminal justice system.

Madlanga was also unimpressed because this appeared to be consistent with a pattern of submitting sick notes before the commission at the eleventh hour that are scant on detail.

Witnesses implicated in serious crime allegations include Brown Mogotsi and North-West businessman Suliman Carrim, as well as senior cop Feroz Khan, who are among the nine that have done so since the inception of the commission.

Johnson, among other reasons, had been scheduled to testify before the commission over allegations that she had shared confidential Idac information for alleged nefarious reasons.

It’s not even a case of a confidentiality issue. It is one of the useless so-called medical certificates

—  Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga

“I notice that this is one of those medical certificates, the nature of which I previously said is useless, in the sense that they give no information whatsoever,” charged Madlanga after the sick note was tabled by representatives of the NPA.

“It’s not even a case of a confidentiality issue. It is one of the useless so-called medical certificates. The bottom line is that advocate Johnson is not here,” he said.

The issue has sparked an important debate about the right to medical privacy in the context of public accountability, particularly before a high-profile commission where the stakes are significant and personal security concerns may arise.

But Madlanga has not sought to invade anyone’s right to privacy.

He is simply asking those seeking sick leave from him to be more transparent and forthright with his commission, in the context of maintaining the right to keep medical conditions private.

In doing so, he has sought to strike the correct balance between individuals’ rights and upholding public accountability.

This is to be welcomed, as one should not trump the other.

Madlanga’s tough stance on these matters was vindicated by Thursday, when it emerged that Carrim, who had supposedly been in his sick bay, had been spotted gallivanting at a mall in the Western Cape.

Vague, undetailed medical certificates submitted by highly paid government officials, trusted with public safety, to a commission of the standing of Madlanga’s, simply do not make the cut.

They only raise suspicions of tactical delays or efforts to Stalingrad the commission until its last day, which Madlanga is correct to not allow.

After all, Madlanga is operating under a tight deadline to submit its final report, which last week was extended by President Cyril Ramaphosa from August to November, with the evidence deadline set for October 2.

Those regulating the medical profession and their ethical bodies ought to reflect on this debate and come up with measures to curb the abuse of doctor-patient confidentiality.