The Ministry of Works Transport & Public Utilities today announced the termination of 58 ministry staff within the Central Eastern after they were implicated in a medical certificate scam.
Ministry spokesperson Sainiana Radrodro said the decision was reached after extensive investigations were carried out when it was noted that medical certificates of a large number of staff from as far as Taunovo depot in Navua and Naqali in Naitasiri were producing sick certificates from the same medical centre in Nausori.
“The same staff were noted to be regularly sick and many had exhausted their sick leave days provided for in the annual allowance. Some had gone on to borrow leave and were producing these medical certificates from the same doctor,” Ms Radrodro said.
She said that it was disturbing to note that most of these certificates were produced without actual physical examination of the patients or officials.
“In that respect, the ministry has alerted the Ministry of Health with regards to these practices and also enlisted the assistance of the Public Service Commission and the Solicitor General’s office in the appropriate action that needs to be taken,” Ms Radrodro said.
Ms Radrodro further revealed that another set of staff are still being interviewed and investigated as part of the second phase of their investigations, which could result in the suspension of senior officers or issuance of warning letters for their involvement or lax attitude in the monitoring of this practice.
“The ministry has made this decision after careful consideration of all the facts and whilst we are mindful that we are approaching the festive season where families would like to end the year on a positive note, we are unable to turn a blind eye to any acts of collusions or malpractice by our staff.”
“Throughout the year, staff are encouraged to set their priorities right and thus, we are calling on all our staff to ensure they act within the rules and regulations of their contracts and also act in a manner befitting their positions as officers of the Government,” she said.
According to Ms Radrodro, this termination will put an end to the abuse of sick day leave that has become prevalent in government institutions over the past years, and sends out a very strong warning for those that engage in such practices to immediately put a stop to it.
Ms Radrodro has called on all senior staff and managers to play a more vigilant role in reporting such officers who are found to be breaching the regulations.
“It is prudent that accountability, transparency and ethics are emphasized to staff and it starts from basic issues such as these,” Ms Radrodro added.