The arrest of two officials of the Department of Labour on allegations of processing several fraudulent Unemployment Insurance Fund claims should serve as a warning to all officials that crime does not pay.
This was said by the Minister of Labour, Mrs Mildred Oliphant following the arrest and court appearance this week of two officials based at the Prospecton Labour Centre in Durban.
“While one does not want to prejudge the matter, this should serve as a warning to all departmental officials to do their work with honesty and integrity. In fact, these kind of allegations would not even arise if we all do our jobs which we get paid for diligently and conscientiously,” said Oliphant.
The charges were precipitated by investigations of the Department’s Fraud Risk Management Unit which reported the matter to the police whose investigations have now resulted in these arrests.
“Government is committed to fighting fraud and corruption. As a department, we will ensure that our officials discharge their duties with utmost honesty. If we believe there is reason to be suspicious, we will not hesitate to pass on the information to the law enforcement so that they can do their investigations and let the law take its course,” she said.
