Siboniso Duma, the MEC for the Department of Transport and Human Settlements, is locked in a legal battle with ALS Paramedics over remarks he allegedly marked about their operations.
Image: Tumi Pakkies/ African News Agency(ANA)
The legal battle between ambulance service provider ALS and KwaZulu-Natal Transport and Human Settlements MEC Siboniso Duma is escalating, with ALS telling the Pietermaritzburg High Court that the MEC continues to make defamatory statements despite ongoing court proceedings.
In a supplementary affidavit filed this week, ALS director Garrith Jamieson alleged that Duma had persisted with statements that damage the reputation of the emergency medical service, even after being given an opportunity by the court to explain why he should not be permanently interdicted.
ALS had initially approached the court on an urgent basis seeking an interim order preventing Duma from making what it described as defamatory remarks about the company.
The application followed a media briefing on January 29 in which Duma accused ALS of providing inaccurate casualty figures and refusing to treat patients who did not have insurance.
However, Judge Pieter Bezuidenhout declined to grant urgent interim relief, stating that “no case [was] made out for interim relief”, while allowing the MEC the opportunity to present reasons why a permanent interdict should not be granted.
Despite the court’s decision, Jamieson said ALS believes Duma has continued making statements that harm the company’s reputation.
He pointed to a departmental statement issued on February 26 which stated: “By and large, the judgment empowers MEC Duma, as the executive authority responsible for road safety, to continue to demonstrate accountability and transparency — all in the interests of ordinary people of KwaZulu-Natal, especially the affected families.”
Jamieson argued in court papers that such statements reinforced the damage already caused.
“The extent of the damage suffered by ALS as a result of the statements made by Duma continues, and will further continue for so long as Duma remains uninterdicted from making further defamatory statements concerning ALS,” he stated.
The affidavit also describes an incident that ALS says demonstrates the practical impact of the public dispute.
According to affidavits from ALS employees Mahommed Yusuf Shaik and Snokuhle Mayaba, a female patient at the Peacevale Cliffdale Bridge on the N3 Northbound declined treatment from ALS paramedics.
The patient reportedly said she had seen the ongoing conflict between Duma and ALS on social media and therefore refused their assistance.
Jamieson told the court that ALS was entitled to seek interdictory relief to protect its constitutional and common-law rights to dignity and reputation.
The legal process will now continue according to a court timetable.
Duma has until March 26 to file his responding affidavit, after which ALS will have until April 10 to submit its reply.
The matter is expected to return to court in May, when the Pietermaritzburg High Court will determine whether Duma’s public statements warrant a permanent interdict.
DAILY NEWS