Today marks three years since Tembisa Hospital whistle-blower Babita Deokaran was brutally murdered outside her home after dropping off her daughter from school. Her family continues to live in the dark about who masterminded her killing. However, the head of the Special Investigating Unit (SIU), Andy Mothibi, said they've made significant progress in the investigations into the Tembisa hospital corruption scandal.

STILL IN PAIN

The spokesperson for Deokaran's family, Tony Haripersadh, said that three years later, the pain of losing her still haunts them. He said it is painful to them that the mastermind behind the murder is still not behind bars. "Three years ago, on this day we were shattered after receiving the news that Babita was shot 12 times and then we realised that this was a planned hit on her. To say the least, that pain never left the family. We still relive that fatal day of the 23rd of August 2021 when our beloved Babita was snatched away from us. It pains us that the mastermind behind the murder is still out there; we assume that he or she is living normal lives and they are enjoying the money from the corruption with his family."

PROGRESS

In 2021, Babita, who was a financial accounting chief in the Gauteng Department of Health, raised the alarm on R850 million in suspicious spending at the department and stopped the payment. She confided in the hospital's chief financial officer, Lerato Madyo, that stopping the money might put her life in danger. She was killed a few days later. Mothibi said they have traced the money and they know where the money has gone and who acquired assets corruptly. "We know who has committed the offences. Through our special tribunal that adjudicates our matters, we are preparing all the papers so that they can recover all that money. We will also recover all the assets that were acquired corruptly so that consequence management is meted out," Mothibi added. "The Hawks are also busy with the investigations and I heard that the criminals that were arrested for the heinous murder of Babita are still behind bars. We've worked with the NPA to ensure that all the crimes coming out of this Tembisa corruption are pursued and prosecuted," he added.

HITMENT SENTENCED 

Babita's killers pleaded guilty to her murder at the Johannesburg High Court and were sentenced last year. Phakamani Hadebe, Zitha Hadebe, Nhlangano Ndlovu, Sanele Mbhele, Siphiwe Mazibuko, and Phakanyiswa Dladla also entered into a plea deal with the state. The group admitted that they followed Babita for a month before killing her execution-style outside her home. They were sentenced to 22, 15 and eight years respectively.